


Missing Piece

by babycrowshouyou



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Coach!Bokuto, F/M, M/M, Panic Attacks, Single Dad AU, Teacher!Akaashi, mature rating for suggestive themes and language, please be careful reading if you're triggered by descriptions of panic attacks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2017-03-02
Packaged: 2018-06-01 07:52:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 30,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6509362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babycrowshouyou/pseuds/babycrowshouyou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bokuto has an amazing life, two jobs he loves, and terrific friends, but every time he sees Akaashi, the father of one of his volleyball players, he can't shake the feeling that his life is missing something, and that something might be him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Emerald Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I'm bad at descriptions... Anyway, I just can't get enough BokuAka or Single Dad AUs, so why not have both in one story, right? I don't have much planned out so far (I just kinda started writing this chapter and didn't stop), so you'll just have to bear with me through this. The rating, relationships, and character tags are most likely going to change as I continue writing, so this is all I have so far. Enjoy!

The loud screech of a whistle echoed off the walls of the small gym, grabbing the attention of the 7- and 8-year-olds hitting volleyballs back and forth to each other. They all ran over to the source of the noise, gathering around their coaches as excitement and anticipation shined on their faces. Well, most of their faces.

"Alright guys and gals, we're gonna split off into two teams and play a match for the rest of practice! Line up, and Hinata’s gonna count off by twos, okay? Ones will be on this side with me, twos will be on the other side with Hinata. Let’s get going!" Bokuto smiled happily as he was met with a chorus of "Yes sir!" and waited as Hinata divided them up. The only one who didn't look excited to play was Emiko, who was fiddling with her fingers as usual. Bokuto walked over quietly and lightly rested a hand on her shoulder while Hinata and his team raced to the other side of the court to get some practicing in before the game started.

"Emiko, aren't you excited to play?" He asked softly, tilting his head. She looked up at him silently, her light brown eyes boring into his gold ones. He waited patiently as she searched for the right words to say; for a 7-year-old, she really thought out her words before saying them, unlike most of the other players on the team. Finally, she glanced away and mumbled something, too quiet for Bokuto to hear over the sound of his fellow coach instructing his players excitedly through various warm ups.

"I'm sorry Emiko, would you mind speaking up a little?" He asked softly, earning a small sigh from the girl.

"Bokuto-san, I don't want to play... The others never let me play wing spiker because I'm a girl. They always make me set instead. I don't like setting, Bokuto-san..." Bokuto frowned. He didn't know this was an issue... It made him feel like a bad coach for not noticing her dissatisfaction sooner.

"I'll straighten them out, don't worry!" He stood up straight and puffed out his chest, like he always when he wanted to seem more authoritative. He walked over to Emiko's team, hands on his hips, and declared loud enough for everyone to hear that Emiko was to be a spiker, not a setter, and that his word was law. He turned to smile triumphantly with a thumbs-up directed toward a beet-red Emiko, who hurried over quietly, throwing a soft "thank you" his way as she got into position.

Walking off the court, Bokuto smiled to himself. He loved when his kids started developing preferences for where they wanted to be placed on the court, especially when they wanted to be wing spikers, like him. The game started and he watched quietly, mentally marking down who needed to work on what, unlike his co-coach, who was calling out plays and instructions left and right. He was beginning to realize that Emiko was actually really, really good at spiking, even if her aim was a little off, which was something he hadn’t noticed before due to her usually being her team’s setter. She was getting to pretty good heights when she jumped, and he could work with her on the power of her spikes as well as the aim, but overall, she really had a good base to start out with that could easily make her an amazing spiker, if not the ace of her team.

As the end of practice started getting closer and closer, Bokuto started getting antsy. He knew that Emiko's father, Akaashi, always arrived ten minutes before the end of practice to watch the last bit, and it was almost time. Akaashi was the most gorgeous man Bokuto had ever laid his eyes on. His dark, emerald green eyes, delicate features, and porcelain skin where enough to get Bokuto to almost fall into a trance whenever he looked at him, and needless to say, he had developed quite a large crush over the few months that Emiko had been on his team. He never had the courage to talk to him though, except for when Akaashi would ask how Emiko was progressing. He just seemed so intimidating, so untouchable, that Bokuto always lost his courage before he could even try.

Focusing intently on the game and trying not to let his nerves get to him, he didn’t even notice the absence of Hinata’s yelling until he was surprised with a whisper close to his ear.

“Bokuto, your crush has arrived.” His head snapped sideways toward Hinata, his eyes wide with shock. Firstly, Hinata had scared the shit out of him, whispering so close without him knowing he was there; secondly, since when did he know about Bokuto’s crush?? Hinata giggled a little and practically skipped away, something usual for any other 25-year-old to be doing, as Bokuto allowed himself to steal a glance toward the spot near the gym doors that he knew Akaashi was occupying. He always waited in the same spot, trying to remain unnoticed by his daughter and the other players, but there was no way for him to go unnoticed by Bokuto. He was actually surprised that he hadn’t noticed the gorgeous man enter until Hinata mentioned it; he usually had a pretty keen sense on whether or not Akaashi was in the same room as him.

He forced himself to turn his eyes back to his team, trying to concentrate on their movements again instead of Akaashi. By the time the game was over, however, he was struggling terribly with trying not to steal another glance at his crush. He stood when the final point was scored, making his team the winners, and waited on the sidelines as they all shook hands under the net. He and Hinata walked to the middle of the court to give some feedback and congratulate them on a well-played game before helping them clean up. Since they were still pretty little, he and Hinata took down and put away the net neatly, while the kids cleaned up stray volleyballs and mopped the floors, before rushing to their parents, who had started filing in shortly after the game ended. Bokuto found himself following Emiko with his eyes as she ran up to her father, who caught her in a tight hug, a warm smile gracing his perfect lips. Bokuto sighed softly, wishing he could be at the receiving end of that smile. Hinata chuckled from where he was standing on Bokuto’s right, a mischievous smile dancing on his lips.

“Why don’t you go talk to him, Bokuto? You could tell him about Emiko’s natural skill for spiking, you know, start a conversation that way.” Bokuto bit his lip, thinking it over, but before he could decide, he realized Akaashi and Emiko were already approaching him, and Hinata had suddenly disappeared from his side. Trying to hold back his giddiness at the prospect of his crush speaking to him, he tried to throw on a warm, easy smile as they stopped a few feet in front of him.

“Hey there, Emiko. You played really well today!” Bokuto’s praise caused a slight blush of embarrassment to grace the young girl’s cheeks as she held onto her father’s hand tighter and looked down at the gym floor. At this, Akaashi lightly squeezed her hand and smiled softly down at her.

“Emiko, don’t you have something to say to Bokuto-san?” He asked softly, and Bokuto could nearly feel his heart melting. His voice was just so angelic, Bokuto wanted to hear more and more of it. No wonder he was a teacher; his voice just made you want to listen. Upon hearing her father’s words, Emiko looked up quietly, her eyes slightly hidden behind her auburn bangs.

“Thank you for letting me play wing spiker, Bokuto-san. I really enjoyed it.” Bokuto’s nervous smile bloomed into a huge grin, which only made Emiko cast her gaze down again.

“Of course! You really have a talent for spiking, Emiko; I’m really glad you asked me to put you there in the first place!” He was practically beaming, knowing that he had helped the ever-stoic Emiko enjoy practice. Akaashi smiled up at him, his eyes warm. Bokuto felt his breath catch a bit; his eyes were so gorgeous, and he felt like he was in a trance.

“Really, thank you, Bokuto-san. I’ve never seen Emiko so happy before, and I know it was thanks to you letting her play the position she wanted.” Bokuto wasn’t quite sure how Akaashi could tell Emiko was happy, but even he could feel an upward shift in her usual attitude. When Emiko had first joined his volleyball team, she had been almost completely silent for the first few weeks, which made it difficult for her to fit in. Bokuto could understand, though; upon joining, Akaashi had informed him that he had recently adopted Emiko, and that she was still adjusting to her new life here with him. He had been hoping that by getting her to join a club, she would be able to make some new friends who shared her same interests, but being as shy as she was, especially since she was still adjusting, made it difficult for her to relate to any of her fellow teammates. But day by day, Bokuto had noticed her slight improvement on that front, and had really noticed it today with her request to be wing spiker. She was adjusting well, and he was glad he was able to help with that.

“Of course, Akaashi-san! It’s my job to make sure kids are able to play what positions they want to play, and find out what clicks for them! Emiko has a real knack for spiking; I don’t think the other kids are gonna make her play setter anymore.” He smiled wide, and felt his cheeks heat up when Akaashi smiled back at him, a bit wider than before.

“Well, we have to get going. Have a nice night, Bokuto-san. We’ll see you tomorrow.” As Akaashi and Emiko left, Bokuto took some deep breaths to calm his racing heart. He just had a full conversation with Akaashi! Akaashi had thanked him! Akaashi said that he would see him tomorrow! He smiled wide, practically glowing with excitement as he grabbed his bag. Hinata bounced over, a knowing smile gracing his mouth.

“Well, that was exciting. I don’t think you’ve ever talked to Akaashi-san for that long, except for when Emiko first joined. How’re you holding up?” He patted Bokuto on the back, none too gently, and Bokuto let out a loud, ringing laugh.

“I feel great! Did you see that smile he gave me? I felt like I was blessed by an angel! How could I not feel great after that?” Hinata laughed as they started walking out together. As Bokuto locked up, Hinata checked his phone, humming softly.

“Hey, Kageyama wants to know if you wanna join us for dinner tonight? He says Oikawa and Iwaizumi might come over too, so you’re more than welcome.” Bokuto looked up at him after sliding the gym keys back in his bag and smiled.

“Sure! I’ll just follow you back to your apartment, then!” He loved when Hinata invited him back for dinner; since he lived alone, it could get pretty lonely, and he was sure Hinata could easily pick up on that, since he asked Bokuto to come over almost every night. Plus, when Oikawa joined them, he always brought over the good brand of wine, which Bokuto was always grateful for after a long day of work and volleyball practice.

Arriving at Hinata’s apartment complex about ten minutes later, he followed his little co-coach up to his apartment and found himself thinking back to Akaashi’s angelic smile. He just couldn’t get that man out of his head, although he wasn’t really complaining. They walked inside and were immediately greeted by Kageyama ordering Hinata to go shower before their other two guests arrived. Chuckling, Hinata pulled off his shoes by the door before bouncing into the kitchen to place a sloppy kiss on his boyfriend’s cheek as a hello. Bokuto smiled and pulled off his shoes as well before walking in behind Hinata.

“Don’t worry, I’m not gonna kiss you, too.” He chuckled and Kageyama looked over at him, the ghost of a smile across his lips as Hinata walked out of the kitchen to go shower, as his boyfriend requested.

“Good, I don’t think my boyfriend would like that very much.” He chuckled softly and went back to cutting up vegetables for what Bokuto assumed to be the curry that was going to accompany the rice he could smell in the rice cooker. He leaned on the counter and looked around quietly; he was never really good at talking with Kageyama when Hinata wasn’t in the room, but he figured he’d try anyway.

“Thanks for inviting me over; I’m always a sucker for your cooking.” He chuckled softly and smiled when he saw Kageyama smile down at the food he was preparing.

“Thanks, Bokuto. You know you’re always welcome.” Bokuto felt his heart warm up at Kageyama’s words. For someone who always seemed so irritated, he sure was nice. He was about to voice his thanks for a second time when a knock at the door caused Kageyama to glance at him.

“Would you mind getting that? I’m sure it’s Oikawa and Iwaizumi.” Bokuto nodded and walked to the door. He opened it, revealing the two men he was expecting to see. Oikawa beamed as Bokuto backed up to let them inside and pulled off his shoes as he greeted him.

“Ya-hoo, Bokuto-chan. It’s nice to see you again.” His usual charming smile danced across his lips as he walked past Bokuto to put the wine he was holding in the kitchen. Bokuto smiled warmly in return before turning to Iwaizumi, who smiled softly and shook his hand.

“Hey, Bokuto. How’s work treating you?” Bokuto was currently working for a sports magazine, reporting on and interviewing up-and-coming sports stars. He beamed happily.

“It’s going great. How’s the bakery?” Iwaizumi and Oikawa ran a bakery together, aptly named The Grand King Bakery. Iwaizumi chuckled, walking into the kitchen with Bokuto to join his fiancé.

“It’s going great; we’re going to introduce a new cookie soon, right before the cherry blossoms start to bloom. It’s decorated to look like a cherry blossom and the icing is slightly cherry blossom scented, and is vanilla-flavored. The actual cookie is a cherry-flavored sugar cookie, and it’s pastel pink. It’s really good, I think it’ll sell well.” Bokuto beamed happily, and was going to reply that it sounded delicious when Oikawa spoke first.

“Of course it’ll sell well, Iwa-chan, it was your idea. Your ideas always work out.” He smiled wide, brimming with pride for his lover. Iwaizumi blushed bright red and looked down, embarrassed from the praise he received, but smiling all the same. Oikawa chuckled and kissed his cheek before going back to his conversation with Kageyama. Bokuto smiled warmly, ignoring the soft pangs of longing that he could feel in his heart from being the only single guy here. He wanted a relationship, sure, but he wasn’t gonna let that affect his happiness for his friends.

“I’m glad you guys are doing so great. You know, Kuroo was telling me that being right by your bakery has really helped out his tattoo shop, since you guys draw so much business. I mean, who doesn’t want to get a tattoo and then get a nice, warm pastry afterwards to ease their pain?” He chuckled, and Iwaizumi joined him with a chuckle of his own. The two talked casually about work-related stuff, and Hinata soon joined them all in the kitchen, fresh from his shower and already complaining about being hungry. They soon ate and enjoyed a glass of wine (or three), and Bokuto couldn’t help but feel grateful for his life. 

However, he couldn’t shake the image of those gorgeous emerald eyes, not even after his third glass of wine. He knew that even though his life was pretty amazing, there was still a piece that he felt was missing, and that piece could possibly be filled by a raven-haired, porcelain-skinned beauty, who he felt himself falling for more and more every day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you wanna come scream with me about BokuAka or Haikyuu!! in general, you can find me on [tumblr](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com)! (Also btw, Emiko's name means "Smiling child" or "Beautiful child", so I thought it would fit nicely... lol)


	2. One of Those Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything was good, and then it wasn't.
> 
> (PLEASE READ THE CHAPTER NOTE AFTER THIS)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so, Bokuto's gonna experience a panic attack in this chapter. If descriptions of panic attacks are triggering for you, you'll be safe if you stop reading at the line, "It was one of those days.", and can continue reading at the line "Finally, he was able to open his eyes..."
> 
> I really don't want to trigger anyone, and I probably won't be going into too much detail like I did with this chapter in the future, but if I do, I will ALWAYS post a warning beforehand, along with the lines you can skip over to skip the attack.

He decided a week later that he was gonna try to talk to Akaashi. Well, Hinata had decided it for him, really, but it’s not like Hinata had to twist his arm or anything. He’d start off light, talking about Emiko’s improvement, maybe he’d throw in a few observations about her being able to branch out a little more with her teammates, then he could ask if she was thinking about if she wanted to join a middle school with a volleyball team… Light stuff. He could do this; they were just two grown men, having a casual conversation. That should be easy, right?

Once practice came to an end that Wednesday night, however, Bokuto was nearly eating his words as he struggled to build up the courage to even look Akaashi’s direction. Doubt was starting to taint his thoughts; what if he was building himself up for nothing? What if Akaashi didn’t like him? What if Akaashi was already in a relationship?

A sudden realization forced Bokuto to freeze, physically and mentally: he didn’t even know if Akaashi liked guys. This whole time, he had just been assuming that Akaashi was gay, or maybe bi, without stopping to think that he could possibly be straight. This epiphany of sorts brought Bokuto to a complete halt, almost causing him to lose out on any chance to talk to his crush that night until Hinata called Emiko over to give her some pointers for her spikes, and some exercises she could do at home. He looked over at Bokuto, giving him a stern look that said _go talk to him, dumbass_. Bokuto shook away his doubts and didn’t have to be told twice. It wasn’t like he was gonna ask Akaashi out… They were just gonna talk.

He walked over to Akaashi, trying to act casual with a nice, easy smile put in place. He could do this.

“Hey, hey, hey, Akaashi-san. Emiko’s really improving, which I’m sure you saw today. She’s really comfortable as a wing spiker.” As he talked, his smile grew wider. He really was proud of her; he even saw a hint of a smile today when she scored for the fourth time. Akaashi looked over and smiled warmly at Bokuto, which sent the pre-existing butterflies in his stomach into a frenzy.

“Yes, she’s really blossoming. Thank you again, Bokuto-san; you’ve really inspired her. Just last night, she couldn’t stop talking about how much she loved the way you coach. She even mentioned that in high school, you were one of the top five spikers in the country. That’s quite impressive.” Bokuto’s cheeks warmed at the compliment, and he laughed a bit, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Well, she’s not wrong. Volleyball’s my passion; I worked really hard to get that position.” He smiled, traces of nostalgia present in his golden eyes as he thought back to the non-stop practicing he did back in high school. He felt a soft pang in his heart as he thought of the countless nights he stayed behind in his school’s gym well after practice ended, just to get some more spikes in; damn, he really missed it sometimes. Akaashi’s smile grew wider as he watched Bokuto smile to himself; it was quite an adorable sight.

“If you don’t mind my asking, Bokuto-san, why didn’t you continue volleyball professionally?” Bokuto looked up, a bit caught off guard by the question, and even more caught off guard by Akaashi’s smile, paired with absolute warmth radiating from his forest green gaze. Bokuto felt his blush spreading to his ears and down his neck as he struggled to remember basic words before he could remember why he chose journalism over volleyball. God, this man was just _so pretty_. Akaashi waited patiently, watching the usually boisterous man attempt to form coherent sentences. Finally, he cleared his throat and rubbed his neck sheepishly, which was an unusual action for Bokuto.

“I, uh, I went to college for volleyball for a while, but decided it really wasn’t what I wanted to do my whole life, you know? So I played up until I graduated, that way I could keep my scholarship while I got my degree in journalism, and stopped playing after that. But I realized I couldn’t just stay away from the sport I loved so much, and Hinata told me he was gonna start coaching younger teams, so I just, y’know, tagged along.” He smiled and chuckled softly, looking down at his volleyball shoes. “Sorry, that was a longer explanation than I was going for.” Akaashi tilted his head slightly, still smiling.

“No, it was a good explanation. Thank you for sharing that with me, Bokuto-san. I must say, I’m glad Emiko’s able to learn from such a skilled player. Knowing that you could have easily gone on to play professionally, and instead chose to coach these kids, must be a real confidence boost for them. They at least know you really do know what you’re doing.” He chuckled softly, and Bokuto’s heart leapt in his chest. Never before had he heard such a beautiful, appealing sound, and he felt like he could listen to it forever and ever, and never get sick of it. He smiled wide, his eyes glowing with excitement from Akaashi’s acknowledgment.

“You know, you’re really spoiling me with these compliments, Akaashi-san.” He laughed, still red from both embarrassment and happiness.

“If it gets you to blush like that, I don’t mind complimenting you, Bokuto-san.” That comment was what dealt the final blow; Bokuto almost felt like he was falling, his knees growing weak beneath him. It took everything he had just to keep standing, and luckily, Emiko ran over to grab her father’s hand before Bokuto could do or say anything completely mortifying, which he was sure would happen if he was left alone with Akaashi any longer. She looked up at Bokuto, confusion flashing across her face, before turning to her father, who was still smiling warmly, although his cheeks were a little rosy, too.

“Daddy, I’m hungry. Can we go now? I wanna eat so I can work on the practices Hinata-san just showed me.” Akaashi tore his gaze away from Bokuto to smile at his daughter.

“Of course, let’s get going. Say goodbye to Bokuto-san first, though.” Emiko looked up at Bokuto, who was still recovering from the fact that his crush _definitely just flirted with him_ , and squeezed her father’s hand a little tighter.

“Goodnight, Bokuto-san. See you tomorrow.” Bokuto recovered just enough to smile down at her, although his eyes were a little out of focus.

“Goodnight, Emiko! Don’t practice too hard, okay? We don’t want you completely exhausted during practice tomorrow!” She nodded and started pulling her father away toward the doors leading out of the gym. Before they stepped out, Akaashi looked back at Bokuto with a different smile than the one he had previously; this one was more of smirk, and man, did it send pleasant shivers down Bokuto’s entire body, causing light goosebumps to sprout up along his skin.

“Goodnight, Bokuto-san. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.” Bokuto couldn’t even reply before they were out the door, and only then did he allow himself to collapse into the pile of mush that he felt like he was after his conversation with Akaashi. He groaned loudly, on his back on the gym floor, staring at the high ceiling above him. Hinata bounced over, grinning ear to ear.

“I take it the conversation went well?” Another groan from Bokuto caused the short redhead to giggle, the corners of his eyes scrunching up in delight at seeing his friend in such a state of absolute infatuation.

“He’s just so… so… so fucking attractive, I can’t handle it!” Bokuto groaned again and brought his calloused hands up to cover his face. This unleashed another giggle from Hinata’s mouth before he bounced away to grab his bag, leaving his friend to continue to groan and roll around on the gym floor like a 5-year-old. Hinata walked back over to lightly kick the bottom of Bokuto’s shoe.

“C’mon, get up, drama queen. Kageyama promised to treat me to yakisoba from that new restaurant down the street from our apartment complex, and he said you’re welcome to join. Hurry up, though; I’m hungry, and I’m not afraid to leave without you.” Bokuto sat up quickly, pouting.

“You wouldn’t leave me really, would you?” His bright, golden eyes glistened with fake tears and Hinata rolled his eyes. Damn it, he was good.

“You know I wouldn’t… Just hurry up.” He looked away from his friend’s wide, owlish eyes and waited as he ran to grab his bag and water bottle from the bench. They left together after locking up and drove to meet Kageyama at the restaurant. The night itself went fine; the food was good, the atmosphere was nice, and Bokuto went to bed feeling happy. Waking up the next morning, however, he felt it right away.

It was one of those days.

He sighed and rolled over to grab his phone to call in sick to work; he didn’t want to go and ruin anyone’s day. He also texted Hinata after the call, letting him know he was having another attack, and that he probably wouldn’t make it to practice today. He rolled back over to bury his face into his pillow and groaned softly. He wished these panic attacks would give him a warning or something… They were always unexpected, and that was what he hated most about them. He frowned and closed his eyes, and let the negativity crash over him like an ocean wave in a storm, submerging him and making it difficult to breathe. He quickly rolled to his back so the pillow wouldn’t constrict his breathing more and stared at the ceiling. He was used to this; he just had to let it pass. He could feel the numbness creeping up his body, starting with his toes and making its way up his legs, and before he knew it, it was like he was completely buried. Despite being numb, he could feel the tips of his fingers and toes growing cold, almost painfully so, and could feel the shaking start with his fingers. His panic attacks always started the same, but he never knew how long they would last. Sometimes it felt like mere minutes; other times, it felt like hours. However, no matter the actual length of the attack, he was always exhausted by the time it passed, and never felt well enough to get anything done. He wished there was an easier way to get over these... All he could do was lay there and remember to breathe, even as tears rolled down his cheeks in sheets, coating his pillow in salty wetness and causing his eyelashes to clump together, which made his vision blurry. He couldn’t help but wonder what brought on an attack this time; work was going well, practice was going well, his friends were all healthy and safe, and Akaashi might actually like him. In his mind, everything was okay, so why was he having a panic attack right now? 

He shut his eyes tight and let everything wash over him as he remembered to take deep breaths, three counts in, four counts out. He remembered reading somewhere that shorter breaths in and longer breaths out could help activate his parasympathetic nervous system or something like that, which was like “rest and digest”, as opposed to the sympathetic nervous system, which was “fight or flight”. He remembered his doctor telling him that his panic attacks were caused by his sympathetic nervous system not working right, or something like that, causing his fight or flight response to kick in at weird times. Thinking about the scientific side of what he was experiencing actually helped calm him down a bit; he was almost able to feel his toes again, and the tears were slowing down.

Finally, he was able to open his eyes, his breathing steadied and his pulse calmed down enough that he was no longer able to feel it vibrating throughout his entire body. He sat up slowly, already feeling the wall of exhaustion fighting to crush him under it, but he knew he needed to eat something now, because he doubted he’d be getting up from his bed again any other time that day. He wrapped his light yellow fleece blanket around his shoulders and walked out to his kitchen on shaky legs, yawning softly. His stomach was twisting in such a way that he really didn’t want to put anything in it, but he knew Hinata would visit either before or after practice, and he would be scolded if he admitted that he hadn’t eaten anything.

He made some toast, hoping his stomach would keep it down well enough so that he could just go back to bed without having to worry about getting up again later in the day. After eating, he did exactly that, and let the exhaustion take over. The next time he awoke, it was dark out, but someone had turned on his bedside lamp. He rolled over and smiled a little when he saw a box of takeout and a pair of chopsticks next to it. He was glad he gave Hinata a spare key to his apartment for days like this. He sat up slowly and picked up his food before getting up and dragging his blanket behind him to the couch in the living room. He sat down, wrapping the blanket around his shoulders, and turned on the TV. After flipping through several channels, he settled on watching one of those cooking competition shows. He watched for a while until he heard the soft vibration of his phone, which was still in his bedroom. Sighing, he put his food down to go get his phone, positive that it was just Hinata checking in on him. His suspicion turned out to be true once he saw the stupid nickname he had given Hinata when they were still in college, although it was more along the lines of six texts instead of one. He walked back to the couch and flopped down before opening them.

**> Crowyou (8:38 a.m.): no problem, bokuto!! feel better, i’ll be fine at practice!!**

**> Crowyou (3:37 p.m.): the kids are all asking about you lol. they all love you so much, dude!**

**> Crowyou (3:38 p.m.): emiko says that she hopes you feel better soon. isn’t she adorable?? this is a good sign, dude. if emiko already likes you, you won’t have to worry about that when you and akaashi-san start dating!**

**> Crowyou (4:36 p.m.): you’re missing an intense match, dude. emiko is killing it out there; she’s scored 7 times so far, and it’s only the first set.**

**> Crowyou (5:07 p.m.): dude. DUDE. akaashi-san seemed so disappointed that you weren’t here today. this is a REALLY good sign, man!! he totally has a thing for you!!**

**> Crowyou (7:32 p.m.): hey man, hope you’re feeling better, i left you some food on your nightstand, but i’m assuming you found it already if you’re reading this. hope you’re good to come back tomorrow, but if not, don’t worry about it. i don’t want you straining yourself, okay? rest easy, man. dream about kissing akaashi-san or something lol. see you soon!**

Bokuto couldn’t help but chuckle softly at his friend’s texts. He felt so lucky to be close to someone like Hinata, who really cared about his well-being. It really made him feel warm inside just knowing he was cared about. He picked up his food and finished it off before getting up to shower. After days like these, he enjoyed spending a good amount of time under the running warm water, and liked to imagine that the water was washing away any remaining tension and negativity. Usually, it worked pretty well, and tonight was no exception. He stepped out of the steam-filled bathroom in his towel, feeling fresh, clean, and, most importantly, relaxed. He knew because he slept through most of the day, it would take a while to get back to sleep for the night, so he pulled on some fresh boxers and flannel pajama pants before walking back out to his living room. He grabbed his laptop to work on his most recent article about a 15-year-old baseball star who had a knack for being able to pitch strikeouts for almost an entire game, no matter the opponent. Bokuto hadn’t believed it at first, but after watching this kid play, he was in complete and utter awe.

He worked until well past midnight, finally falling into bed around 1:30 and drifting into a peaceful sleep. He didn’t remember his dreams, but he was sure they were nice and warm due to the light, airy mood he woke up in later that same morning. He smiled and stretched his arms, feeling a slight, satisfying burn in his biceps. He got up and got ready for work, feeling much better than yesterday. Work was nice and peaceful, not chaotic like it could be when they had a big issue coming out soon. Bokuto got his article done with ease and submitted it to the editor before taking his lunch break. He went to visit Kuroo, his absolute best friend, at the tattoo shop he owned a few blocks from the office building that housed the main branch of the magazine. He walked into the Cat’s Claw Tattoo shop, grinning ear to ear as he shouted his usual greeting.

“Hey, hey, hey! What’s up, everyone?” A client and her boyfriend looked up at him, surprised at the outburst, but Tsukishima Kei just glanced up at him from the receptionist's desk with uncaring eyes, used to the man’s loud voice.

“Kuroo’s with a client. Sit down and try not to bother anyone too much, alright?” Bokuto chuckled and sauntered up to the desk, hands on his hips.

“C’mon, Tsukki, why do you have to be so serious all the time? You know I won’t do anything bad.” Tsukishima looked up at him, obviously deliberating on whether or not he should punch Bokuto for calling him by his nickname. Instead, he opted to list the times that Bokuto _had_ done something wrong.

“Last time you were here, you wanted to get a closer look at Kuroo’s tattoo process and spilled all of his inks, some of them on him. The time before that, you inflated all of our medium sized gloves and left Asahi with only the option to use the large ones, which are way too big for his hands, because he didn’t want to put on gloves that were full of spit. Oh, and I’m sure you remember the time before _that_ , when you-”

“Okay, okay, I got it, sit down, shut up, don’t touch anything.” Bokuto pouted and went to sit down near the couple waiting their turn, who were now looking at him nervously, like he might single-handedly ruin their entire tattoo experience. He continued pouting until he heard the familiar voice of his best friend coming out of one of the private tattoo rooms, which were usually used when someone wanted a tattoo in a spot that would require them to take off their shirt or pants. He perked up as the voice got closer, listing instructions on how to take care of the tattoo and what not to do, and stood up when the familiar head of messy black hair finally came into view. He waited until Kuroo’s client left before beaming happily.

“Bro!!” He ran toward his friend and jumped on him excitedly. Luckily, Kuroo had pretty fast reflexes, and caught him easily, laughing loudly. Tsukishima rolled his eyes and went back to reading whatever novel he was fixated on this week as the two obnoxiously loud friends gushed about how long it’d been since they hung out. Finally, after being snapped at by Tsukishima, they hurried out and across the street to the Grand King Bakery to indulge on some pastries instead of getting a real meal for lunch. They greeted Iwaizumi and Oikawa before ordering coffee and cranberry orange muffins, as well as a couple of the new cherry blossom cookies Iwaizumi told Bokuto about last week. After paying for their food, they sat to start eating and Kuroo smiled slyly at Bokuto.

“So, Bo, how’re things moving with your daddy friend?” Bokuto felt his cheeks flush almost immediately at the mention of Akaashi, and he almost choked on his coffee. After painfully swallowing the scalding drink, he blushed brighter under Kuroo’s expectant gaze and looked anywhere but at his friend’s face as he answered slowly.

“Things are good, they’re good… We, uh, talked after practice the other day, and I think he might’ve flirted with me a little bit… And yesterday, Hinata said he seemed disappointed that I wasn’t at practice, so…” He cleared his throat nervously and rubbed his neck. Kuroo’s smirk grew into a grin as he patted his friend’s shoulder.

“He totally digs you, bro! This is great news!!” Bokuto couldn’t help but smile at his friend’s encouragement. He thought he felt something between him and Akaashi, but hearing second opinions that supported his feeling definitely helped boost his confidence. The two men continued talking about their love lives, with Bokuto gushing about how incredibly _gorgeous_ Akaashi was, and Kuroo talking about his most recent date with an adorable introvert named Kozume Kenma, who invited him out to an arcade. Despite the choice in venue, Kuroo claimed he’d never had so much fun on a first date, and that he had a second date set for this weekend. Bokuto smiled as he listened, and couldn’t help but get even more excited to see Akaashi tonight after volleyball practice. Ever since their conversation two days ago, he couldn’t get the man’s gorgeous, jaw-dropping, knee-weakening smirk out of his mind, and found himself wondering how that smirk would look if his pretty pastel pink lips were red and swollen from Bokuto’s kisses. He blushed wildly at the thought and found himself smiling shyly to himself, which caught Kuroo’s attention.

“What’s got you smiling like that?’ He chuckled as Bokuto blushed more. He decided to keep his little thought to himself for now and shook his head, beaming as he looked back up at his friend.

“Nothing, it was nothing.” Kuroo smirked, but didn’t push it as Bokuto finished off his muffin. Man, he really couldn’t wait for practice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The descriptions I used for Bokuto's panic attack were based off of my own experiences; everyone experiences panic attacks differently, but if there is something alarmingly wrong with something I wrote, PLEASE tell me. 
> 
> As always, you can come talk to me on [tumblr](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com)! I love getting messages! Also, thank you all so freaking much. I mean, wow, I didn't expect so many people liking my story just after the first chapter! I'm excited for where this story is going, and I hope you all are, too!


	3. Flustered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bokuto just really can't get enough of Akaashi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm in rarepair hell with AsaYachi, and I'm not afraid of dragging you all down with me.

Sitting still was obviously out of question for Bokuto. For nearly the entirety of practice, even during the practice match, he found himself either pacing or bouncing on the balls of his feet. Hinata made it a point to let Bokuto know just how annoying he was being by suggesting that maybe he should go run some laps to get rid of some of his energy. To no one’s surprise, Bokuto actually agreed, claiming it was a brilliant idea before running a solid ten laps around the outside of the gym while the game continued inside. He came back around half an hour later, panting and sweaty, yet still seemingly full of energy. He really couldn’t help it; thinking about Akaashi being disappointed that he wasn’t at practice yesterday made him simultaneously nervous and extremely excited to see the beautiful man again tonight.

All of his excitement came to a grinding halt however, when the end of practice rolled around and his crush was nowhere to be seen. Attempting to maintain a positive attitude, he approached Emiko with a warm smile, although it seemed a bit forced.

“Hey Emiko, where’s your dad?” He was really trying not to seem desperate, especially in front of Emiko, but it was hard. She looked up at him and tilted her head quietly.

“Oh, daddy’s busy with tutoring sessions today for his students. Yachi-san is picking me up today, though she’s running late…” At this, the girl scrunched her nose up ever so slightly in an expression of her annoyance. Bokuto tried so hard to keep his shoulders from hunching in disappointment; this wasn’t fair. He wanted to collapse on the floor and whine about his misfortune; instead, he bit back his whines and chuckled softly.

“Who’s Yachi-san?” He had to admit, he was curious. Akaashi’s flirting could have been misinterpreted on his part, though he was positive it wasn’t, and he had to admit that he was worried that Emiko would tell him that this Yachi-san was her father’s “special friend” or whatever. Instead, he was pleasantly surprised by her answer.

“Yachi-san is a teacher, like daddy. They work at the same school, and she babysits me sometimes.” The small girl’s eyes suddenly lit up, as if she realized something exciting. “Oh! I hope Yachi-san comes to get me with Azumane-san! He always gives me piggy-back rides!” 

Her sudden outburst surprised Bokuto, for two reasons: firstly, Emiko wasn’t one to show so much emotion in one night, let alone one sentence; secondly, Bokuto actually knew someone named Azumane, although he just called him Asahi, like all his friends did. He actually worked for Kuroo at the Cat’s Claw, and Bokuto liked to think they were friends. How did he not know Asahi was dating someone, and what were the chances that his girlfriend was a friend and coworker of Akaashi? With this new information, Bokuto found himself hoping that Asahi joined Yachi in picking up Emiko, as well.

After about ten minutes past the end of practice, a small blonde woman was suddenly at the gym doors, completely out of breath from running. Emiko crossed her arms, a look of disappointment crossing her features.

“Yachi-san, you’re late!” The young girl scolded the young woman, as if she was the eldest of the two. Bokuto watched with subtle amusement as the woman bowed several times in apology.

“I’m so sorry, Emiko-chan! I got stuck in traffic and Azumane-san called and asked if I could pick him up from work so I had to turn around and-” Emiko quickly cut off the rest of her apology with an excited gasp.

“Azumane-san? Is he here?” She started to move toward the doors just as a familiar head of long brown hair popped up next to the woman, who was still trying to catch her breath and looked like she was trying not to cry.

“Hey, Emiko. Sorry we’re late…” Asahi walked in around the blonde, looking sheepish as he rubbed the back of his neck. Instead of giving him the same disappointed lecture she gave to the young woman, Emiko ran over to Asahi and jumped at him. Luckily, Asahi seemed to know it was coming, and caught her easily. It amazed Bokuto that Emiko seemed so attached to Asahi; with his intimidating height and build, as well as the tattoos snaking up his arms, many children found him to be pretty scary. Bokuto smiled and walked over to them.

“Hey, man, good to see ya. How come you never told me you were dating such a cutie?” He looked over at the young woman, whose face started turning bright red at the compliment. Asahi looked up in surprise, like he wasn’t expecting Bokuto to be there, before chuckling softly, his face turning red as well.

“I don’t know, it just never came up… Hitoka, this is Bokuto, Kuroo’s best friend. Bokuto, this is Yachi Hitoka, my girlfriend.” Yachi was finally able to calm down enough to bow deeply, and Bokuto did the same, still chuckling. She seemed fitting for Asahi, whose timid nature probably fit well with hers.

“So, Emiko told me you’re a teacher, like Akaashi-san. Do you two hang out often…?” He really couldn’t help himself; if Yachi was good friends with Akaashi, he really wanted to make a good impression on her, that way she wouldn’t disapprove of him wanting to date his crush. Yachi smiled, finally relaxing a bit more at the mention of her friend.

“Yeah! Akaashi and I actually went to university together, although he was a year ahead of me. He really helped me out, though, and helped me get the job I have now.” Bokuto smiled at the thought of Akaashi really caring about his friends; it was heartwarming.

“That’s really awesome. Akaashi-san seems like a great guy…” He smiled lazily, almost like he was in a good dream. Yachi and Asahi caught on easily and gave each other matching smiles.

“Well, we have to get this little lady home before her dad gets too mad at us.” Asahi chuckled and moved Emiko so that she was riding on his back. Bokuto smiled wide and nodded.

“Yeah, okay! It was nice seeing you, Asahi, and it was nice meeting you, Yachi-san! One day, you’ll have to tell me how you two met, because I’m still reeling over the fact that I never knew Asahi was dating someone.” Bokuto chuckled lightly, but noticed that at the mention of how hey met, both of their faces turned a satisfying crimson color, which informed Bokuto that their meeting was most likely not kid-friendly. At this, he smirked, and wished them a safe trip home before going to get his bag. Hinata had left almost right after practice ended, telling Bokuto that he and Kageyama had a special night planned. Bokuto found himself grateful that kids were still present, because the last thing her wanted was further elaboration on what his co-coach meant by “special”.

Before walking out of the gym, Yachi turned back to Bokuto, a smile warming up her light brown eyes.

“Oh, Bokuto-san? Akaashi wanted me to tell you that he’s sorry he couldn’t make it tonight, and that he hopes you’re feeling better. He also asked me to tell you that he’ll be here Monday night, and he’s looking forward to seeing you then.” Bokuto’s breath caught in his throat; Akaashi really asked Yachi to tell him all that? The blinding smile that formed across his lips was enough of a response for Yachi, who giggled and waved before hurrying out to catch up to her boyfriend and Emiko. Bokuto left the gym in a daze, smiling like an idiot. He was definitely head-over-heels for this man, and he was really hoping Akaashi felt similarly about him.

When he got home to his apartment, hearing noises coming from his kitchen startled him, to say the least. He frowned and silently pulled off his shoes at the door before picking one up to have as a potential weapon he could use on the intruder. He crept toward the kitchen, hearing someone rummaging through his fridge. He took a deep, quiet breath before rounding the corner quickly, throwing his shoe at full force in the direction of his fridge.

“Ow, fuck! Bokuto, what the hell?!” Bokuto looked up in surprise at the familiar voice and met the eyes of his best friend, who was holding the side of his face that his shoe had hit.

“Kuroo? What the hell are you doing in my apartment when I’m not here?”

“Well, I wanted to come check on you, and you’re usually here by now, so when you didn’t answer the door, I got a little worried and let myself in, and then I noticed you weren’t back yet, and I was thirsty so…” Bokuto looked at his friend, still kind of confused.

“Wait, bro, why didn’t you just check to see if my car was here when I didn’t answer the door?” This caused Kuroo to pause, and he looked like the thought had never dawned on him.

“Oh… right. I forgot that I could do that.” Bokuto burst into laughter at his friend’s sheepish expression, clutching his stomach.

“Bro, for someone so freaking smart, you’re so dumb sometimes!” Kuroo flushed and walked over to put Bokuto in a playful headlock, digging his knuckles into Bokuto’s scalp, trying not to laugh along with his friend. They wrestled for a little bit before Kuroo finally let him go, chuckling.

“Sorry, bro. I just figured I’d wait for you to get home; I should’ve called or something.” Bokuto chuckled and shoved his friend lightly before grabbing two beers from the fridge.

“It’s cool, dude. You know you’re always welcome. Just… next time, text me or something, so I don’t throw my shoe at you again, or worse.” Kuroo laughed and rubbed the red mark forming on his cheek, wincing a little.

“Yeah, that’s fair.” The two walked over to the couch and flopped down. Bokuto turned on the television before cracking opening his beer and taking a long sip, savoring the flavor as the liquid ran down his throat. He pulled the can away and let out a loud burp, earning him and smack on the shoulder.

“Bro, that was disgusting!” Despite his criticism, Kuroo was laughing, his eyes watering a little. Bokuto laughed with him and relaxed back. Kuroo took a sip before looking at his best friend, a lazy smile settling on his lips.

“So, how’s your daddy friend? Angelic as always?” He smirked as Bokuto’s smile turned into a small pout of disappointment.

“He didn’t come today. Emiko was picked up by- oh! Did you know about Asahi’s girlfriend?!” He turned to his friend suddenly, eyes wide. Kuroo lifted a brow and frowned a bit.

“Asahi has a girlfriend? No shit… Wait, how do you know he has a girlfriend?” Bokuto started jumped a little in his seat, excited to tell Kuroo something he didn’t know about one of his own employees and friends.

“He came with her today to pick up Emiko! She’s adorable, by the way, just as timid as Asahi, if not more, and get this- she works with Akaashi! She’s _friends_ with Akaashi, which means Asahi is probably friends with him, too! How wild is that?” Bokuto was already smiling at this point, but his smile grew even wider as he recounted Yachi’s last words to him. “She said that Akaashi was looking forward to seeing me on Monday, too! Kuroo, do you understand what this means?!” Kuroo laughed lightly at his best friend’s excitement.

“What does it mean, Bokuto?” he asked, eliciting a small whine from Bokuto’s throat at his nonchalance.

“It means I have a really good chance! It means that Akaashi actually wants to see me again, enough that he had his friend tell me so!” Kuroo smiled warmly at the excitement written plainly across Bokuto’s face; his friend was really in deep.

“I’ve never seen you so hyped up over a guy before, Bokuto; it’s adorable.” Bokuto puffed up a little at being called adorable, but eventually relaxed into a wide smile, his golden eyes shining.

“He’s just so perfect, Kuroo. Once you meet him, you’ll get it.” Kuroo chuckled and took another sip before replying.

“I’m sure I’ll be meeting him soon.”

Later that night, after three more beers for each of them and after it was decided that Kuroo would stay the night, Bokuto stared up at the ceiling of his bedroom, smiling softly to himself as he thought about Akaashi. He could feel the crowd of butterflies fluttering around in his stomach, causing a warmth to blanket his entire body, all the way to his toes. He sighed happily before rolling over onto his side and shutting his eyes, holding onto this feeling as long as he could as he drifted off to sleep.

The following Monday at practice, Bokuto could barely hold in his enthusiasm when he saw Akaashi walk through the gym doors. He had found himself regretting not having practice on Saturdays or Sundays, as he had been so anxious to see Akaashi again that the days had seemed to drag by as slow as possible. Their eyes met across the gym and Akaashi smiled warmly, waving a little. In return, Bokuto beamed brightly, his eyes shining. Akaashi’s face turned a pleasing shade of pink as he smiled a bit wider, looking away to focus on the game, instead of the adorable coach. Bokuto chuckled softly and turned back to the game as well, watching his team. They were getting much, much better at working together, and Bokuto couldn’t help but feel a strong sense of pride when either team scored. This was his favorite part of coaching; he loved how excited the kids got when they made a successful play, and he loved it even more when the team who got scored on shouted out words of encouragement, telling their teammates that they would get the next point.

After the game ended with Hinata’s team winning by two points, the score being 34-32, and after they all cleaned up the court, Bokuto found himself being drawn over to Akaashi, his heart speeding up as he got closer to the angelic man.

“Hey, hey, hey, Akaashi-san! Long time, no see!” He smiled wide, and felt his heart nearly skip a beat when Akaashi looked p at him, smiling like he had been waiting for him to come over.

“It has felt like quite a while, hasn’t it, Bokuto-san? I’m glad to see that you’re feeling better. I had been looking forward to seeing you last Friday…” At this, Bokuto blushed wildly and smiled wider.

“Trust me, I would’ve been here if I could’ve been. On Friday, Hinata was getting annoyed with how excited I was during practice; I was pretty bummed that you weren’t here.” Bokuto’s face turned bright red when he realized exactly what he had just said, but it caused Akaashi to chuckle softly, and he remembered how absolutely beautiful the sound was.

“Bokuto-san, I was wondering… I have a get together with some of my coworkers this weekend, and they always bring their significant others. I know it’s not ideal for a first date, but it would be nice if you could come as my plus one. We could go get dinner after, if you would like to.” Bokuto felt like his head was spinning. Akaashi just said _first date_. He just asked him out. He just asked him out! His eyes widened and glee lit up his entire face.

“I-I, uh, I wo-would, I- yes! Yes, I would love to accompany you!” He blushed at how much he was stumbling over his words, but he was so incredibly excited that it was hard to think straight, and Akaashi’s warm smile was _not_ helping.

“Thank you so much, Bokuto-san. I know it’s an odd date, but I think you’ll like my coworkers. Yachi-san will be there as well, and she’ll be happy to see you; she adores you already.” He smiled and tilted his head a bit to the side. “You seem to easily draw people to you, Bokuto-san. It’s like you’re a brilliant light, and we’re all just moths.” Bokuto’s stomach pulled and he could feel his mouth gaping open, like a fish. Did Akaashi really just say that? Akaashi seemed to have realized what he just said out loud, because his usually composed expression turned to one of complete and utter embarrassment.

“Oh my god, I just said that out loud. I’m so sorry, Bokuto-san. I didn’t mean- I mean, I do mean it, but I didn’t mean to say it out loud, and I-” He quickly cut himself off by burying his cherry red face in his beautiful, slim hands. Bokuto could only stare, an idiotic smile resting on his lips as the butterflies in his stomach turned chaotic. This man was _perfect_. How in the world had he managed to draw him in?

Emiko was suddenly by Akaashi’s side, lightly tugging on his sleeve.

“Daddy, I’m ready to go home.” The small girl was obviously oblivious to her father’s condition as she picked up her bag and turned to bow to Bokuto.

“Goodnight, Bokuto-san. See you tomorrow.” He smiled warmly at the girl, bowing back.

“Goodnight, Emiko! Have a good night!” She nodded before looking back at her father, who was still trying to compose himself. He glanced up at Bokuto shyly, taking Bokuto completely off guard. He’d never seen Akaashi shy, and he felt like he’d been blessed by the heavens above.

“Goodnight, Bokuto-san. I’ll give you more details about next Saturday tomorrow.” Bokuto beamed and nodded, excitement bubbling up in his chest.

“Goodnight, Akaashi-san!” He smiled happily and watched as the father and daughter left quickly, barely catching Emiko ask her father why he was so red. He chuckled to himself and turned around to find a smirking Hinata watching him.

“What was _that_?” Bokuto blushed and smiled wide, his eyes practically glowing.

“What that was, was me getting a date for Saturday with the most beautiful, adorable, angelic man I’ve ever met.” He placed his fists on his hips in a proud stance, at which Hinata laughed and rolled his eyes.

“C’mon, loverboy. Kageyama bought my favorite meatbuns, and I refuse to let them get cold. He bought your favorites, too, to let’s go!” Hinata hurried out with Bokuto close behind, cheering about the dinner he was now looking forward to. Even as he drove to Hinata’s apartment, he could feel the warm blush still on his cheeks, and he smiled as the image of Akaashi’s flustered expression filled his thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayyye their first date will be what makes up the next chapter, along with maybe some DaiSuga, and definitely some more AsaYachi!! As always, you can come scream with me on [tumblr](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com)! I'm so happy you guys have enjoyed it so far, and I'm excited to keep writing about these dorks!!
> 
> (Also, I realized, much to my embarrassment, that I had some continuity errors with days of the week... I fixed it, though! So, just in case anyone was concerned or confused, Bokuto had his panic attack on a Thursday, Yachi picked up Emiko on a Friday, and the second practice in this chapter is the following Monday. I'm so sorry about that!!)


	4. Rosemary and Lavender

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He couldn’t help but notice the soft scent of rosemary and lavender that wafted up from Akaashi’s hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so Suga single-handedly brought about a change in rating for this story, because he's a suggestive little shit and I love him. So yeah, introduction of suggestive themes and lots more foul language.

“You got an actual date with your daddy friend?” Kuroo’s genuine surprise would’ve hurt Bokuto’s feelings under any other circumstance, but he was too excited to care this time.

“Hell yeah, I did! Bro, _he_ asked _me_! Can you believe that? He was so cute, too! He got all flustered after saying that I was like a moth… No, wait, I think he said he was a moth… Shit, I forgot what he said exactly, but damn it, it was cute. He didn’t mean to say it out loud, and he got all flustered and his face was so red, and fuck, Kuroo, I think I might be in love with this man.” Bokuto sighed happily as he relaxed back on his bed, shutting his eyes and stretching his free arm out. Kuroo chuckled a little on the other end of the line.

“Whoa there, buddy, don’t get too ahead of yourself. You don’t wanna scare him away, do you?” Bokuto pursed his lips a little, realizing Kuroo had a point. He really didn’t want to screw up this chance Akaashi was giving him. He sighed again, a little more dramatic than the last, and sat up slowly.

“He’s just so perfect, Kuroo. I don’t know why he’s willing to go for a guy like me, but I’m not gonna complain.” He smiled a little to himself, thinking of Akaashi’s beet red face.

“Hey, stop that. Kou, you’re one of the coolest guys I know. You’re smart- don’t even try to interrupt me, you _are_ \- and fucking hilarious, you’re built like a god, you’re so damn nice all the time too, and on top of all of that, you’re fucking amazing with kids. What more is there for a guy to want when he has a little munchkin of his own to take care of?” Bokuto smiled bashfully at the compliments Kuroo was showering on him; they were definitely helping lift his spirits and alleviating his worry.

“Bro, you always know what to say to make me feel better.” Kuroo laughed softly and Bokuto could practically see the big smile on Kuroo’s face as he spoke.

“That’s what best bros are for! We pick each other up and dust each other off and give each other confidence!” Bokuto lets out a heartwarming laugh.

“Bro, you’re such a softie. Now, now, enough about my gorgeous date, tell me about Kenma! How’d your second date go?” He smiled and laid back down as Kuroo started talking about his date enthusiastically, barely remembering to breathe once in awhile. Bokuto learned that Kenma was incredibly good at video games, co-owned a cat rescue, and, apparently, looked incredibly hot when he tied his hair back in a loose bun. He and Kuroo talked for a while longer before he made himself go to bed, still feeling warm from his best friend’s praise.

The next day at practice, he was surprised when Akaashi came in half an hour earlier than usual, and practically melted when he noticed how incredible he looked in a button-up shirt, his sleeves rolled up to just over his elbows. Dark green was definitely a good color on him. He smiled wide when their eyes met and waved quickly. He felt his heart squeeze when he noticed a light blush crawl over Akaashi’s cheeks as he waved back, smiling shyly.

He and Hinata had decided to work on helping their setters get used to how to toss to each player, so there was no practice game today, and Bokuto couldn’t help but notice that Akaashi was watching him almost as much as he was watching Emiko, with that adorable little smile stretched across his lips. Bokuto felt himself flush at the attention, but was proud that he managed to keep his focus on his kids. As practice wrapped up, and after they had finished cleaning up the court, Akaashi wasted no time in walking over and greeting Bokuto, who was taking a long drink from his water bottle. He quickly swallowed the water in his mouth, nearly choking on it, before smiling wide.

“Hey, Akaashi-san! You came early today!” Akaashi smiled warmly, tilting his head to the side in the way that always made Bokuto’s heart flutter.

“Hello, Bokuto-san. I managed to leave the school a bit earlier today than I do most days, so I figured I would come watch Emiko. She’s very excited for the practice match next week; she even had me set for her this weekend so she could get some more practice in.” He chuckled softly and looked up at Bokuto with a certain type of warmth that he couldn’t quite place. “She really looks up to you, Bokuto-san. It’s heartwarming to see how fond of you she has become ever since you let her play the position she wanted.” Bokuto beamed, putting his fists on his hips and puffing out his chest a bit.

“Of course! It’s up to me as the coach to help all my players find the position they feel the most comfortable in!” Akaashi chuckled softly and nodded, his emerald eyes shining in the fluorescent gym lighting.

“I don’t want to change the subject so suddenly, but I do still have to give you some more information about this Saturday.” Bokuto dropped his arms to his sides and he felt his cheeks grow a bit warm at the thought of _their date_.

“Right! Uh, is it a fancy thing? Do I need to dress nice? What kind of flowers do you like? Do I need to pick you up? Or are you picking me up?” Akaashi held up his hands and chuckled softly, halting Bokuto’s string of questions.

“No, it is not fancy, just a small get together at Sugawara-san and Sawamura-san’s home. I can come pick you up to avoid the possibility of getting lost, however that would require us to exchange numbers.” He smiled, a hint of coyness flashing across his features, causing Bokuto’s stomach to stir excitedly.

“O-oh, yeah! Here!” He fumbled around in his gym bag before finding his phone. He unlocked it and opened the screen for a new contact before handing it to Akaashi, almost shaking in anticipation. Getting his number would make this _official_ , and he could barely stand still as he watched Akaashi type his number in. He smiled as he handed the phone back to Bokuto and Bokuto quickly sent a text to the new number saved under “Akaashi Keiji”.

“There, now you have my number too!” Bokuto beamed as Akaashi checked his phone and waited as he saved Bokuto’s contact information. “So… How many of your coworkers are going to this get together?” Bokuto had to admit, he was a little nervous. He didn’t want Akaashi’s friends to get a bad impression of him. Akaashi looked back up and pursed his lips a bit as he thought.

“Well, Sugawara-san and Sawamura-san both work with me, then there’s Yachi-san, who will probably bring Azumane-san with her, and then there’s Shimizu-san, although I’m not sure if Yamamoto-san will be joining her or not, as he might have a match… so, four co-workers, and two others.” He smiled warmly and Bokuto nodded, fighting off a sigh of relief. Four wasn’t bad, and one of them was Yachi, who seemed to like him already. The name Yamamoto struck him as familiar, but he was more focused on the fact that he was actually going to a gathering with Akaashi as his date.

“I can’t wait to meet them!” He smiled wide and Akaashi smiled back at him warmly. Emiko hurried over to greet her father and quickly started dragging him out of the gym after a quick goodbye directed toward Bokuto. Before they got to the doors, however, Akaashi turned back toward Bokuto with a small smile.

“Oh, Bokuto-san? I like daffodils, by the way.” He was pulled out of the doors before Bokuto could respond, so he just smiled happily, his cheeks growing warm. Daffodils it was.

After everyone had gone home, Bokuto walked with Hinata back to their cars, talking about the possible line-up for their practice match next week. They both agreed that Emiko would be starting, although she seemed to be having a little trouble finding a setter to keep up with her. Both Hinata and Bokuto could understand her frustration fully; they had both struggled with setters while in school. Hinata was lucky he and Kageyama had picked the same school, since their styles of playing managed to match up perfectly after only a little bit of rough terrain. Bokuto had pretty good setters in his years of playing, but he never seemed to find one that clicked easily with him, not like how Hinata and Kageyama had clicked, so he wanted to make sure Emiko found the setter she needed, no matter how hard it would be.

He said goodnight to Hinata before going home, taking note of the flower shop about five minutes from his apartment as he drove past. He’d go in later this week to see if they had any daffodils that he could give to Akaashi. After a shower, dinner, and getting some work done, he happily went to bed, excited to have the opportunity to wish Akaashi a good morning when he woke up the next morning.

 

* * *

 

“Where are my god damn pants?” On the Saturday of his date, Bokuto found himself running around his room, looking for the pair of pants he had put on his bed, and later forgot about. He tore apart his closet desperately, standing in just his boxers and half-buttoned shirt, his hair still slightly damp from his shower. He whined to himself and gave up on his closet, turning around as he ran a hand through his hair to get it out of his eyes. His gaze landed on his bed, where his pants were waiting for him, still folded neatly. He groaned at his stupidity and quickly pulled them on before buttoning up the rest of his shirt as he hurried back into the bathroom to do his hair. He had exactly twenty minutes before Akaashi was supposed to pick him up, and he refused to make that beautiful man wait on him for their first date.

Just as he finished pulling on his socks, a light knock on the front door sounded through his apartment, causing him to jump in surprise. He hurried to the door and took a deep, calming breath before opening it, a huge smile lighting up his features as his eyes fell on his date.

“Hey, hey, hey, Akaashi!” He quickly turned to grab the daffodils from where they were resting on top of his shoe rack and handed them to Akaashi, whose warm smile made Bokuto feel like melting on the spot. He realized with a hint of mortification that he had forgotten to add the honorific to Akaashi’s name, but if it bothered him, he didn’t show it.

“Oh, Bokuto-san, thank you. These are lovely.” His eyes closed momentarily as he inhaled their light scent and Bokuto watched with utter fascination as a calm washed over Akaashi’s whole body. He opened up his eyes again, capturing Bokuto in something that felt quite like a trance. “Are you ready to go, Bokuto-san?” He asked softly, tilting his head to the right, a light smile playing on his lips.

“U-uh... “ Bokuto stuttered, unable to think of actual words for a moment. He blinked a few times, trying to regain his knowledge of the Japanese language. Finally, he just turned and pulled his shoes on quickly before grabbing his keys from the small bowl on top of the shoe rack. He turned back to Akaashi, smiling wide.

“Ready!” Akaashi chuckled softly and moved out of the way to let Bokuto out of his apartment. He locked the door behind him before walking with Akaashi to his car, feeling completely giddy. Just talking to Akaashi after practice could never compare to this; he was finally spending time with him, and only him. He quickly hurried ahead of Akaashi when he figured out which car they were heading to and opened the driver’s side door for him, beaming. Akaashi smiled warmly, a small bit of surprise evident in the way his eyebrows rose at Bokuto’s gentlemanly action.

“Thank you, Bokuto-san. Would you mind holding my beautiful flowers while I drive?” He smiled and Bokuto quickly nodded and gently took the bouquet from Akaashi’s hand. He nearly gasped when their fingers brushed in the exchange and couldn’t help the way his eyes lit up at the small bit of contact. After Akaashi was inside the car, Bokuto closed the door behind him and hurried to the other side to get in. He buckled up and tried to keep his leg from bouncing in excitement, but it was really difficult, so he decided to stretch out his legs instead, and that seemed to solve the problem. He looked over at Akaashi, still reeling from the fact that they were going on a real date. Well, kind of; they were meeting up with a bunch of other couples, but hey, a date was a date, and Akaashi had definitely called it as such.

Bokuto was a bit surprised at Akaashi’s music choice; he didn’t really seem like the type of person to like rock music, but he definitely wasn’t complaining. The drive was pleasant, full of talk about what to expect from Akaashi’s coworkers. He made sure to warn Bokuto of Sugawara, who, as Akaashi said, looked and spoke like an angel, but could be sly and mischievous as hell, and apparently had a knack for making people flustered. This special skill was mostly directed toward his boyfriend Sawamura Daichi, and Asahi, who were both easily embarrassed, but that didn’t mean that Bokuto was safe from it. Bokuto had to admit, he was a little intimidated already, but was excited all the same.

They arrived at a nice house that already had two other cars lined up on the street around it. Akaashi parked a little ways down, in front of what Bokuto recognized as Asahi’s car. This made Bokuto a little less tense; at least he knew someone there for sure. Akaashi instructed him to leave the flowers in the car, although the fear of them wilting crossed Bokuto’s mind as he did as he was told. When Akaashi walked around to meet Bokuto on the sidewalk, he was surprised to feel him intertwine their fingers before smiling.

“Is this okay?” Bokuto could barely find his voice to answer. He stumbled over his words a bit, his entire face red and his cheeks pulled into a painfully wide smile. He ended up only being able to nod enthusiastically, earning him a light chuckle from Akaashi. They walked to the house together, and Bokuto could feel his stomach start to twist nervously with every step they took toward the front door. Akaashi reached out and rang the doorbell before squeezing Bokuto’s hand reassuringly. He looked over at him and smiled warmly, rubbing his thumb against Bokuto’s lightly.

“Don’t worry, Bokuto-san; they’ll absolutely love you.” Bokuto swallowed and nodded, but before he could speak, the door opened, revealing a beautiful silver-haired man. He smiled wide at the two of them before speaking.

“Akaashi, you’re finally here! And oh, thank god, you brought Bokuto! I’ll admit, you definitely weren’t lying about his arms; they’re definitely a nice sight.” The man winked at Bokuto, causing his cheeks to grow warm. Glancing over, he noticed a bright red blush painted across Akaashi’s cheeks as well, and that helped him relax into a teasing smile.

“You like my arms, Akaashi?” Akaashi turned even redder at Bokuto’s teasing tone and he looked up at him.

“Bokuto-san, this is Sugawara Koushi. Suga-san, may we please come in now?” Sugawara chuckled at Akaashi’s immediate change of subject and nodded, moving out of the way to let them in. He looked up at Bokuto and beamed.

“You can just call me Suga, cutie; I’m not really big on formalities.” He chuckled again and Bokuto smiled happily. He didn’t seem _too_ bad. Yet. they walked in and pulled off their shoes before following Suga to the living room, which was pretty full already. Bokuto immediately recognized Yachi and Asahi and quickly waved to the two of them. Yachi jumped up quickly to greet them, beaming happily as she pulled Asahi up by his arm to do the same. Asahi chuckled and walked over to them behind her.

“Hey, Bokuto. It’s nice to see you.” Bokuto beamed and shook his hand firmly.

“Yeah, hey, man! I gotta admit, I was pretty relieved when Akaashi said you’d be here, since I don’t really know anyone else, except Yachi, of course.” At the sound of her name, Yachi turned to them, still smiling happily.

“Bokuto-san, I’m so happy to see you here with Akaashi! You know, I was the one who encouraged Akaashi to ask you to come today.” She giggled and Bokuto beamed.

“Well then, thank you very much! I’m happy to be here, especially with Akaashi.” Bokuto smiled over at Akaashi, who was trying to hide his red face behind his hand. Bokuto could tell he was smiling, though. They all sat down, Yachi and Asahi back on the small loveseat and Bokuto and Akaashi on the floor on pillows. Bokuto was introduced to the others in the room: Sawamura Daichi, who had Suga’s legs in his lap as they both sat on the couch, Yamamoto Taketora, who was sitting in a really comfortable-looking chair, and Shimizu Kiyoko, who was sitting in his lap.

“Yamamoto?! Dude, you know Akaashi?!” Bokuto was beaming at his old friend. He had gone to high school with Kuroo, and was their volleyball team’s ace. He was playing for the Japan team now, and Bokuto liked to go to any games that he could in order to support him. Yamamoto beamed happily, his eyes lighting up.

“Hell yeah, dude! Kiyoko works with him, how could I not know him?” He laughed and Bokuto laughed with him, happy to see another familiar face. They all went through simple small talk, getting Bokuto used to their dynamic as they talked about how their classes had been for the past week. Suga eventually directed the conversation back toward Bokuto, the small gleam in his eye giving his otherwise innocent smile a more mischievous look.

“So, Bokuto, it’s nice to finally meet the man with god-like physique and a smile that could replace the sun.” A quick glance toward his date told Bokuto that these were things Akaashi had actually said about him, and he couldn’t help but smile shyly, an expression he wasn’t used to. Akaashi huffed and crossed his arms as what almost looked like a pout settled on his lips.

“Suga-san, I told you those things in confidence…” Suga giggled, covering his mouth like he had just now realized what he said.

“Oopsie! Sorry, Akaashi, I just couldn’t help it!” Daichi sighed and lightly patted Suga’s knee before smiling apologetically at Bokuto.

“Please excuse my boyfriend; sometimes he doesn’t know what’s coming out of his mouth.” This caused Suga to turn his gaze to his boyfriend, a coy smile resting on his lips.

“That might be true, but I always know what’s going _in_ my mouth. Isn’t that right, Daichi?” Suga’s fingers danced across the arm that was resting on his thighs, and Bokuto had to physically hold back a laugh as Daichi’s entire face turned bright red. He understood what Akaashi meant earlier about Daichi getting embarrassed easily, and he had to admit if he was in Suga’s position, he’d tease him all the time too, just to get that expression he had at that moment. Yamamoto, unlike Bokuto, made no attempt to hold in a loud, gut-busting laugh, and even Kiyoko was giggling, although she was at least trying to hide it behind her hand. Yachi’s face was almost as red as Daichi’s, which was adorable, and Asahi was just sighing softly, a small smile across his lips. Akaashi was chuckling softly, obviously glad the attention was off of him again.

Eventually, the conversation turned to how all of the couples met, because Bokuto was curious, and it seemed like everyone already knew how he and Akaashi met.

“Ooh, I want to go first!” Suga volunteered, beaming. Judging from the blush that was already on Daichi’s face, Bokuto knew the story was going to be a good one. Akaashi chuckled and shook his head before looking up at Bokuto.

“Prepare yourself, Bokuto-san; Suga doesn’t hold back any details.” This suddenly caused Bokuto to get a little nervous. He wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but he was really hoping he wasn’t going to end up getting a play-by-play about the first time they fucked.

“Stop freaking him out, Akaashi, it’s a good story, now hush!” Akaashi chuckled and everyone set their full attention on Suga, who smiled brightly before continuing. “Well, it all started four years ago, when both of us first started working at the elementary school. I was, and still am, the charming, young kindergarten teacher, adored by all of the kids and envied by the older teachers. One day, during a faculty meeting, my eyes happened to fall upon the most handsome fifth grade teacher I’d ever seen, with the most amazing thighs and ass I’d ever laid eyes on, standing near the back of the room. Of course, I had to introduce myself to this gorgeous man, and there was an instant connection between the two of us. He felt it, I felt it, and the poor janitor definitely felt it when he stumbled upon us fucking in his storage room after school that day. What can I say? I needed to have some hands-on experience with that pinchable ass of his. I’ll always remember the mortified look on Daichi’s face when we were caught.” Suga sighed happily, his expression nostalgic. Daichi was hiding behind his hand, his face, neck, and ears bright red, telling Bokuto that everything Suga had said was absolutely true. He laughed, eyebrows arched in surprise.

“You guys fucked at school?! In the janitor’s closet?!” Bokuto laughed more, holding his stomach. Obviously, everyone else had already heard the story, so they weren’t laughing as hard as Bokuto, but they were still laughing with him. It was a ridiculous story, but seemed to fit them perfectly; Bokuto honestly would’ve been surprised if it had gone any other way. He looked over at Yachi and Asahi before smiling wide.

“Your turn. I’ve been wondering how you met ever since I found out you two were dating.” Yachi’s face turned red and she looked the Asahi for help, her eyes pleading. Asahi sighed a little and rubbed the back of his neck, smiling bashfully.

“Well, it’s not exactly far off from Suga’s story, actually…” Bokuto gasped, suddenly even more intrigued. Asahi’s cheeks turned red and he stared at his knees as he started talking again. “Hitoka and I have actually known each other since high school, but since I’m two years older than her, we didn’t really get the chance to get very close. We ended up reconnecting in college, during her second year and my fourth. Yuu had dragged me to a party and promptly left me to my own devices to go scope out the guys and girls that he could possibly hook up with that night. I ended up on a couch that smelled like cats, a bit drunk and very lonely. All of a sudden, there was a girl sitting next to me, looking very uncomfortable and about as drunk as I was. I remember trying to figure out who she was for the longest time, until she looked over at me and immediately screamed my full name, making everyone in the living room turn to stare at us. I had been worried that I had scared her, but she took away that worry when she moved closer and huddled against my side, talking about how her friend had left her alone because some guy, who we later figured out was Yuu, had swung by and swept her off her feet. We talked for the entire party and, well, we ended up going home together, and, you know…” He trailed off, blushing more. Yachi looked just as embarrassed, but she scooted closer to Asahi so that their thighs were pressed together. Bokuto smiled warmly; their story was actually kinda cute, minus the drunk hookup part. He just couldn’t believe they’d been dating for so long, and he never even had a clue.

“I guess that leaves us for last!” Yamamoto declared, beaming. Kiyoko smiled and leaned against him to listen to him recite how they met. “Unlike all of you; well, Suga, Daichi, Yachi, and Asahi, at least; I’m not sure about you and Akaashi yet, Bokuto, since this is technically your first date and you still have an entire day to prove me wrong. Anyway, unlike all of you, Kiyoko and I actually started dating like normal people, instead of initiating dating by hooking up. We also met in high school; she was the manager of her school’s volleyball team, and it was basically love at first sight for me the first time I saw her at a practice match between our teams. I remember how heartbroken I was initially to find out that she was a year ahead of me and would be graduating before I had the chance to really woo her, but I guess I just got lucky, because after our teams dueled it out at nationals during her last year, I built up the courage to confess, and she actually accepted me.” He paused to smile up at Kiyoko, who smiled back down at him and gently stroked his cheek. Instead of continuing, Kiyoko picked up from where he left off.

“We maintained a long distance relationship during my first year of college, and after he graduated, he decided to attend the same college as me once he was offered a volleyball scholarship, that way we could really be together. Our ten year anniversary of when we started dating is actually coming up this year.” She smiled at them before turning to plant a sweet kiss on Yamamoto’s forehead. Bokuto smiled and rested his chin on his knees. They were really cute together. Yamamoto was a pretty rowdy guy, but Kiyoko seemed to balance him out really well. He felt Akaashi move closer to gently lean against his side, and Bokuto took this as an opportunity to gently wrap his arm around Akaashi’s waist. Instead of pulling away, Akaashi smiled up at him and simply snuggled closer. He couldn’t help but notice the soft scent of rosemary and lavender that wafted up from Akaashi’s hair, making Bokuto feel the desire to bury his nose in Akaashi’s hair to smell it better. Suga pouted at Yamamoto, obviously disappointed that their story was cuter than his. Daichi chuckled softly and gently rubbed Suga’s thigh comfortingly, which caused Suga to break into a soft smile as he caught Daichi’s hand and kissed his knuckles. Bokuto was really glad Akaashi asked him to join him today; he hoped that one day, he could have as close of a relationship as everyone in the room with Akaashi.

Kiyoko eventually turned to Akaashi, still lightly running her fingers through Yamamoto’s Mohawk and smiling gently.

“Oh, Akaashi-san, I’ve been meaning to ask how Emiko is doing. She was such a joy to have in my class last year, even if it was just for the last two months, and I’ve been wondering how she’s adjusted to second grade.” Akaashi smiled and lifted his head from Bokuto’s shoulder to answer.

“She’s doing wonderfully, thank you for asking, Shimizu-san. She occasionally complains about not having you as a teacher anymore, but she’s been doing amazingly well. She’s such a bright girl. The only thing she’s struggling a bit in is math, but we’ve been working on it. She doesn’t seem to respond well to my teaching style, however, even though I teach second grade.” He chuckled softly and Bokuto perked up a little.

“I could try to help, if you want. I’m not too good at any other subjects, but I used to tutor for math all the time.” He smiled warmly as Akaashi looked up at him, surprise evident on his face.

“That would be wonderful, Bokuto-san; thank you for offering. Emiko already adores you, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind spending more time with you.” Akaashi smiled warmly. “If you wouldn’t mind, we could have our first session Monday night after practice, sort of like a trial run?” Bokuto beamed happily and nodded.

“Yeah, let’s do it!” Akaashi smiled back at him, about to say something, when Suga’s happy sigh caused them both to look up at his content smile.

“It’s so nice hanging out like this, especially now that Akaashi’s not the odd man out without a date. Sorry, honey, I always felt bad that we were all flaunting our relationships in front of you… but look at you now, all cuddled up with a gorgeous man of your own! Now I can kiss Daichi all I want and not feel guilty!” As if proving his point, he grabbed Daichi’s face between his hands and pulled him in to plant a big, wet kiss on his lips. Daichi immediately turned red, but chuckled and gently cupped Suga’s cheek. Yamamoto whined about their “gross PDA”, which Suga responded to by pulling away from Daichi and, with a devilish smirk, starting to kiss his neck. Yamamoto groaned and looked away, pouting and grumbling something about disrespect. Daichi laughed and gently pulled his boyfriend away after he saw how red both Asahi and Yachi were; Yachi even had her face buried in Asahi’s chest, trying to hide her expression.

The rest of the get together went amazingly smooth; Bokuto really enjoyed getting to know all of Akaashi’s friends, and he had to admit that so far, Suga was definitely his favorite. He was a little shit, but he was just so funny that Bokuto couldn’t help but adore him. He found it interesting that Suga taught kindergarten; he couldn’t imagine someone with such a filthy mind teaching little four- and five-year-olds, but who was he to judge? Obviously Suga was good at his job if he’d been working at the same school for four years, earning stellar reviews from the parents of almost all of his students. The only bad reviews he got were from parents who found out he was gay and didn’t approve of it. Suga had laughed at this when he told Bokuto, but he could tell that there was a flash of hurt in his eyes, even as he cracked jokes about it. He completely understood; it was hard being told that you were wrong for who you loved.

Eventually, after many hours of joking around and having fun, Akaashi and Bokuto said their goodbyes to their friends. Suga walked them to the door, as he had done about half an hour ago when Asahi and Yachi took their leave. As they got their shoes on, Suga quickly grabbed Akaashi’s wrist, eyes wide.

“Akaashi, please, please, _please_ keep a hold on this man; I want him at every possible get together we have in the future.” Suga’s pleading made Bokuto brim full of happiness. He hadn’t felt so wanted or accepted in a really long time, and it really felt nice. Akaashi smiled and looked up at Bokuto, his eyes so full of warmth that Bokuto felt like he was outside on a pleasant summer day.

“Don’t worry, Suga-san; I don’t plan on letting Bokuto go anytime soon.” Bokuto’s smile was absolutely blinding, and he barely heard Suga’s hum of approval. They left together, and the entire ride back to his apartment, Bokuto couldn’t wipe the wide smile from his cheeks. He didn’t understand how or why he had gotten so lucky in meeting Akaashi, but he was incredibly grateful that he had.

Akaashi parked in front of the apartment complex and shut off his car before smiling at Bokuto.

“May I walk you to your door, Bokuto-san?” Bokuto nodded quickly as he fumbled with his seatbelt, still beaming.

“Of course, Akaashi! You don’t even have to ask, okay?” Akaashi chuckled softly and nodded. They got out of the car and walked up to Bokuto’s apartment, hand-in-hand. When they got to his door, Bokuto felt a sudden pang of disappointment in his chest when he realized their date was over. He tried to fight the pout he could feel forming on his lips, but he wasn’t doing a very good job. Akaashi smiled up at him softly, and Bokuto could recognize the same disappointment in Akaashi’s eyes.

“Thank you for coming today, Bokuto-san; it really meant a lot to me that you could meet my friends, and I’m beyond happy at how quickly they accepted you, although I never doubted they would. I wish we could stay together longer, but I have to get back to Emiko before it gets too late…” He bit his lip lightly, drawing Bokuto’s eyes to his mouth before he could stop himself. Akaashi smiled gently, and before he knew it, their lips were touching and he was suddenly engulfed again with the rosemary and lavender scent that he knew he would always associate with Akaashi after today. He gently wrapped his arms around Akaashi’s waist at the same time Akaashi wrapped his arms around Bokuto’s neck, pulling their bodies closer together so that Bokuto could feel the warmth of Akaashi’s chest from under his shirt pressed against his own. Their kiss was over too soon, leaving Bokuto wanting more. He opened his eyes, meeting Akaashi’s gaze as they stayed pressed together, chests heaving with leftover anticipation. Bokuto found himself kissing Akaashi again, gentler and less desperate this time, holding Akaashi tighter as their lips moved slowly against each other, finding a rhythm. The second time they pulled away, Akaashi smiled and lightly rested his forehead against Bokuto’s, the tips of his fingers gently stroking the back of his neck.

“I really wish I didn’t have to leave…” He whispered, breath warm against Bokuto’s lips. Bokuto smiled softly and moved one of his hands to gently rub Akaashi’s lower back.

“It’s okay, Akaashi, get home to Emiko; I’ll text you tonight, okay?” Akaashi smiled, looking a little relieved at Bokuto’s mention of Emiko, causing Bokuto to wonder if it was a small test to see if he was willing to put Emiko before himself. If so, he was pretty sure he passed. Akaashi gave him another quick kiss before going back to his car. Bokuto smiled wide as he entered his apartment, still feeling the tingle on his lips that Akaashi’s kisses left in their wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so happy that this story has had such positive comments so far, you guys don't know how much this means to me!! I'm so sorry this update took so long; I wanted to make sure I did this one exactly how I wanted to, and I've also been absolutely swamped with preparations for finals and whatnot. I hope you all liked this one!! As always, y'all can get ahold of me on [tumblr](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com), and seriously, don't be afraid to hit me up about anything; I love when people message me because they liked my work!! Also, as a sidenote, I just wanted to let y'all know I've started tracking the tag "Missing Piece fic", so if you all post something about it, make sure to tag it with that!


	5. Full of Wonder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we learn about Emiko's mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have absolutely no excuse for why this took so long, and I am so sorry to those of you who have been waiting over a month for an update. I hope this makes up for it! This chapter's a little heavy on the angst (just a little) since we learn about Emiko's mom.

Bokuto felt like he was in daze for the entire weekend, if he was being completely honest. He found himself daydreaming about Akaashi’s kisses on much more than one occasion, even when he hung out with Kuroo and Asahi at the tattoo parlor. Asahi was ecstatic that he and Akaashi had kissed, and let Bokuto know just how happy Yachi would be to hear it later that evening. He really tried to enjoy his Sunday, he swore, but all he found himself doing was looking forward to the next day, when he knew he’d see Akaashi again, and then be able to go over to his house to help Emiko with her math homework. Honestly, how could he not be excited?

Sleeping Sunday night was actually relatively easy; he’d worked himself up so much all day trying to actively listen when people were talking to him that he pretty much wore himself out, and passed out as soon as his head hit the pillow. Work the next day was excruciating, but finally, finally, _finally_ , it was four o’clock, and that meant it was time to head to the gym for practice.

He and Hinata arrived around the same time and made small talk as they walk into the gym to set up before the kids arrived. When Hinata asked about his date, however, Bokuto found it hard to contain his enthusiasm as he recounted Saturday’s events.

“Holy shit, Hinata, this man is amazing. I mean, I just can’t believe how perfect he is, you know? And his friends are fucking hilarious, especially Suga. He’s a kindergarten teacher, though you’d never guess because he has such a filthy mind, but he’s really awesome. Oh, and Yamamoto was there, too! Turns out he’s dating Shimizu-san, who works at the school with Akaashi! Small world, right? Yachi-san and Asahi were there too, thank goodness. I really like Yachi-san, she’s like a little ball of nervous sunshine, and she gives the best hugs, I swear. But anyway, we all just talked and ate and joked around and it was honestly the most fun I’ve had in a while. The whole time, Akaashi stayed snuggled up to my side and I swear to you, this man smells fucking _amazing_ , like rosemary and lavender. When we left, he walked me to my door, and then he kissed me! He kissed me, Hinata!! Can you believe it?!” Bokuto finally stopped talking, waiting for Hinata’s response with sparkling eyes and a wide smile. Hinata smiled wide back at him, practically jumping from his secondhand excitement.

“You did it, Bokuto! I’m so happy for you!!” They both celebrated for a few more minutes before forcing themselves to start setting up before anyone showed up. Bokuto felt like he was on top of the world, and he really couldn’t believe he was so lucky.

They led their kids through drills after they had all arrived to prepare for their practice match on Wednesday. It was against a team that was a little more experienced than their kids, but Bokuto believed that with Emiko’s spike, they wouldn’t know what hit them. During one of their water breaks, Emiko walked up to Bokuto, playing with her hands nervously. Bokuto smiled down at the girl and swallowed his water before crouching down to be at eye level with her.

“Hey Emiko, what’s up?” She glanced up at him from under her bangs before looking away again, a light blush coloring her cheeks.

“Are you and daddy going to get married?” Her voice was barely above a whisper, but Bokuto heard it loud and clear. He felt his heart do somersaults in his chest and his smile widened a little.

“Well, kiddo, your daddy and I just started dating. If we ever do get married, it wouldn’t be for a long while. Why do you ask?” He watched as the young girl chewed on her bottom lip before looking up at him.

“I think daddy really likes you. He liked my mommy too, but not in the same way. He was mommy’s best friend, and he was nice to her and smiled at her all the time, but he never smiled at her the way he smiles at you. It’s like those people in movies, with the sparkly eyes and the red cheeks. They always get married at the end, so I was just curious if you would get married, too.” Bokuto blinked as he took it all in. He’d never heard Emiko say so many words at one time before; this was like a shock to his system. Then there was the talk about her mother, who Akaashi had never mentioned. Obviously Bokuto knew she had to have a mother, but he was curious about her now, knowing that she was Akaashi’s “best friend”. He forced a calm smile onto his lips and lightly patted her head.

“I really like your daddy too, Emiko, but I think it’s just a little too early for us to talk about marriage, okay? Now, have you had enough water?” He smiled as she nodded and hurried back to the court with the rest of her teammates to go through some more receiving drills. They went through receiving, spiking, tossing, and serving, and by the time the drills were through, everyone was breathing heavily and sweating profusely, including the two coaches. For once, Bokuto had been so wrapped up in practice that he had failed to notice Akaashi entering the gym and waiting off to the side, in his normal spot at his usual time. It wasn’t until Hinata shot him a knowing look while they started cleaning up that Bokuto finally let his eyes wander until he was met with a forest green stare. He beamed happily and waved at Akaashi, squirming in delight when Akaashi waved back with a warm smile on his lips. He cleaned up quickly, wanting to go talk to his (almost) boyfriend more than anything. Finally, when the net was put away and the volleyballs were cleaned up, he grabbed his bag and water bottle and walked over to the man and girl waiting for him by the door. He said goodbye and waved to Hinata, who waved back with both hands as he beamed brightly.

“Hello, Bokuto-san.” Akaashi’s warm, silky voice washed over Bokuto, wrapping him up in the fuzzy feeling he always got when he was around Akaashi.

“Hi, Akaashi.” His smile was so wide, his cheeks hurt, but he really couldn’t help it. He was overjoyed when Akaashi leaned over to give him a chaste kiss on the cheek, and felt his entire face heat up with what he was sure was a deep blush.

“So, you can just follow me home, unless you need to stop at your place first? If that’s the case, I can follow you first.” Bokuto smiled and rubbed his neck before answering.

“Ah, well, I’m pretty sweaty… I’d at least like to change my clothes.” He chuckled softly and Akaashi nodded in understanding.

“Of course, Bokuto-san. Well then, I’ll let you lead the way.” He smiled and Bokuto felt like melting on the spot. He’d honestly never get tired of this feeling.

They walked out to the parking lot together, listening to Emiko talk about practice. Bokuto occasionally jumped in with tidbits of information, and Akaashi listened intently, a soft smile resting easily on his lips. This all felt so natural; it was almost like Bokuto fit right in, like a piece to their puzzle.

After stopping by his apartment to freshen up and change, he followed Akaashi and Emiko in his car to their apartment complex. To Bokuto’s delight, it wasn’t too far from his, and it was relatively simple to get to. After parking next to Akaashi, they all walked up to the fourth floor. The entire walk up, Emiko told both men about her day at school; her class had been able to join Yachi’s for the day and they all had partnered up as reading buddies. Emiko had been with a little boy named Youichi, who, according to her, was a rambunctious kid who didn’t like to sit still. She had apparently had her hands full all day, until the last hour of reading time.

“He wasn’t listening, so I told him that he was cuter when he was quiet. He didn’t get up again for the rest of our reading time, and he was blushing as much as Bokuto-san does when daddy comes to pick me up.” She looked up at Akaashi with a smug expression, causing Akaashi to fumble with his keys as he tried unlocking the door to their apartment. Bokuto couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled out from between his lips; this little girl was amazing.

“While that was a smart move, you are too young to be calling boys cute,” Akaashi scolded her as he opened the door, but it was obviously a half-hearted attempt, as his small smirk indicated. Bokuto tried to calm himself down as he followed behind the two, and bowed before taking off his shoes, stumbling over the words “pardon the intrusion” as giggles continued to fall from his lips. Akaashi handed him a pair of slippers with a warm smile and Bokuto took them graciously. They were a little big, but he figured they were the pair Akaashi usually kept for visitors, so they had to fit the majority of foot sizes. He noticed a pair of slippers off to the side that were smaller than Akaashi’s and decorated to look like cute little bunnies, and couldn’t help but wonder who they belonged to. Following his curious gaze, Akaashi’s eyes fell on the slippers and he smiled.

“Oh, those belong to Yachi-san. She often comes over in the evenings, so I bought a pair of slippers just for her.” Akaashi’s smile was fond, and it was obvious to Bokuto that they were close. Bokuto smiled easily and walked further into the room with Akaashi.

“That’s nice of you, Akaashi. You two seem to be really good friends.” At this, Akaashi nodded and smiled, though it seemed to be a little sad. Bokuto wanted to ask why, but before he could, a small hand was tugging gently at his shirt. He looked down and smiled at Emiko, who was staring up at him with the usual impassive tint to her brown eyes.

“Daddy said you were coming over to help me with math. If that’s true, we should get started before dinner is ready.” For what felt like the hundredth time, Bokuto was reminded of how much older Emiko acted, and all he could do to respond was nod. She removed her hand from its hold on his shirt and opted to take his hand instead as she led him to the living room. Bokuto looked back at Akaashi, who smiled warmly and nodded.

“I’ll get started on dinner while the two of you get some work done. Emiko, remember to be polite to Bokuto-san. If something is confusing to you, use your words, not your actions. Okay?” Emiko looked back at her father and nodded before continuing to the living room. Bokuto followed behind with little restraint and the two of them sat down on the floor. As Emiko started rummaging through her backpack to find her homework, Bokuto let his eyes wander around the clean space. His eyes flitted from the comfortable-looking couch to the moderately-sized television, to the large bookshelf filled with various types of books. His eyes skipped over the titles ( _The Wonders of Teaching_ , all seven _Harry Potter_ books, _The Littlest Owl_ , _The Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales Master Collection_...) before wandering over to a few small picture frames decorating the wall. He smiled as he recognized Akaashi and Emiko napping in the shade of a large tree, small spots of light dotting their peaceful faces as sunlight filtered through the leaves. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that Emiko was much younger in the photograph, probably around 3 or 4, and Bokuto found himself wondering if maybe the photographer was Emiko’s mother. 

He looked to the next photo and smiled softly. In it, Emiko was holding a small chestnut colored rabbit to her chest, her eyes wide and full of wonder. She looked older in this photo, maybe 6, and she was dressed in her school uniform. This was probably taken while on a field trip, as he noticed in the background, there were a couple more blurry figures wearing similar uniforms. Her auburn hair was a bit shorter, in a bob similar to Yachi’s, with her bangs pinned to the side with two glittery green bobby pins. She had a small hint of a smile on her lips, and Bokuto couldn’t help but feel a pang of fondness in his chest. He wondered if Shimizu-san had taken the picture, since she had been Emiko’s teacher last year.

His eyes went to the last picture, and he was immediately drawn to the beautiful stranger smiling next to Akaashi and Emiko. With her auburn hair and dark eyes, Bokuto could only assume that this was Emiko’s mother. The picture looked like it was possibly taken the same day as the first picture with just Akaashi and Emiko as Emiko looked to be around the same age. All three were smiling brightly at the camera, with Emiko’s smile being the largest. She was squished between her mother and Akaashi, and was smiling so wide that her eyes were squeezed shut. Akaashi’s smile was soft but genuine, and the mother’s was wide enough to rival Emiko’s, making the outer corners of her eyes crinkle. She was honestly breathtaking, with sunkissed skin, soft features, and twinkling eyes, and Bokuto couldn’t help but think that Emiko looked exactly like her.

A soft tug at his sleeve brought his attention from the smiling faces in the picture to the girl sitting before him, her features drawn into an expression of passive indifference.

“Bokuto-san, please stop spacing out. I’m ready to start my homework.” Her direct tone was enough to make Bokuto smile and turn to face her completely.

“Sorry about that, Emiko, I promise I’ll concentrate more. Now, let’s take a look at this homework of yours.” He leaned over the table to take a look at Emiko’s worksheet full of math problems.

Surprisingly, Emiko was easily frustrated when it came to math. Though the majority of her expression would remain the same, her brows would furrow when she didn’t understand something, and her tone became clipped and impatient. Luckily (or unluckily, depending how it was looked at), Bokuto was fairly used to impatience, and knew how to work with it without making it worse. After about twenty minutes, Emiko’s furrowed expression and clipped tone was gone, and the math homework was three fourths of the way done. After going through several different ways to solve her math problems, one had finally clicked for her, and she was flying through the problems with minimal help from Bokuto. 

By the time Akaashi came to get them for dinner another twenty minutes later, the homework was done and Emiko was reading _The Littlest Owl_ to Bokuto, who was listening intently. Akaashi smiled warmly as he leaned on the entryway, watching Emiko point out her favorite illustrations as she read. He didn’t want to interrupt, especially not when Bokuto looked so cute, but he didn’t want dinner to get cold.

“Emiko, Bokuto-san, dinner is ready.” Both looked up from the book to Akaashi, who was still smiling fondly. Bokuto looked back to Emiko and smiled.

“We can finish the book after dinner, if you want.” Emiko nodded and placed the book on the table before standing up. Bokuto stood as well and all three walked to the small table where dinner was waiting. They sat down and bowed their heads, their hands placed together as they gave their thanks for the food. After lifting his head again and picking up his chopsticks, Bokuto smiled wide at Akaashi.

“This smells amazing, Akaashi. I can’t wait to dig in!” Akaashi smiled warmly and thanked him, and soon, all three were quiet, too busy eating the delicious food to talk. After finishing the food, Bokuto offered to help clean up while Emiko went to clean up and get ready for bed. Akaashi graciously accepted and the two of them started on the dishes, with Bokuto doing the washing and Akaashi doing the drying and putting away. After only a minute of silence, Bokuto couldn’t contain his curiosity anymore.

“Emiko looks a lot like her mom.” His voice was quieter than usual; he was curious, but he didn’t want to seem rude. Akaashi paused as he dried the glass Bokuto had handed him, but the pause was short and he soon continued as if Bokuto hadn’t spoken. Just as Bokuto felt like he had overstepped his boundaries, Akaashi started speaking softly.

“She looks almost identical… I take it you saw the pictures, and are curious as to what led to me gaining custody of Emiko?” Bokuto swallowed, feeling a little guilty as he nodded his head. Akaashi sighed softly and put away the glass before he started talking again.

“Hana and I became friends in our second year of middle school. We met when her family moved down the street from mine, and initially, our parents had hoped that we would one day get married and start a family. We spent a lot of our time together, but it was never anything more than platonic. She had fallen in love with someone else, and I had realized I was gay; she was actually the first person I came out to, and she encouraged me to tell my parents. She was incredibly supportive, and by our first year of high school, we were best friends. She and the boy she fell in love with had gotten together the next summer, and he was a nice young man. He treated her well, understood our friendship, and was respectful of my sexuality. They stayed together throughout our remaining years of high school, and everyone assumed that one day, they would get married. When we were in college, though, when we were both 18, Hana came to me and told me she was pregnant. This was incredibly taboo, as I’m sure you know, and she was scared to tell her boyfriend. Eventually, however, she had to, as she started getting larger. To everyone’s surprise, he broke things off almost immediately after finding out, claiming he didn’t want to be tied to a bastard child.” At this, Akaashi took a soft, shaky breath, trying to calm down his quivering voice. He took another breath, took the wet bowl from Bokuto’s frozen hands, and started drying it as he continued.

“This left Hana heartbroken, of course. She was left to raise a child by herself while still in school, and after confiding in her parents, was shunned by her family as well. At this point, I was the only one left for Hana to rely on, and I promised to never leave her side. I loved her, truly. She was like my sister, and I hated seeing her so broken. She ended up dropping out of college to start working as much as she could before her pregnancy got too far along, and she moved in with me in my apartment that I was sharing with our friend Yahaba. I started working outside of school as well, wanting to make her as financially secure as possible when the baby came. After a long nine months, Emiko finally came, and Hana was ecstatic. She was beautiful, so, so beautiful. The first thing she did when the doctor handed her to Hana was smile, and Hana decided her name should be Emiko because of it. Emiko was like my daughter, too. Even after Hana and Emiko moved out so that they could be closer to her parents, who had finally reached out to her after Emiko’s birth, we spent so much time together. By the time she started speaking, she had started calling me daddy, and I never had the heart to tell her otherwise. When she was old enough to comprehend more, Hana and I told her that her mommy and daddy were just friends, that we loved each other a lot, but were not like other mommies and daddies, and she surprisingly understood completely. Honestly, everything was so perfect. Hana was happy, Emiko was happy, I was happy… When we were 24, after I had graduated and moved into this apartment, which is closer to the school I work at, Hana called and told me that she was sick. She refused to tell me what with, just that it was a little serious and that if possible, I needed to take care of Emiko a little bit more than usual while she got treated.” At this point, Akaashi’s voice was trembling, and his usual air of quiet confidence was slowly crumbling to reveal the heartbreak he endured. The dishes were almost done, as they had continued washing and drying them while Akaashi had been speaking. Bokuto gently squeezed his shoulder, and after taking a few deep breaths and taking the last bowl from Bokuto, Akaashi continued again. 

“She made it sound like it was nothing, like she just had a bad cold or something that could be treated easily. What started off as a six month treatment turned into a year. At that point, Hana was still smiling, still just as loving, but was obviously very, very sick. I’ll never forget the day she handed me a manilla folder, her hands frail and shaky. Inside, I found adoption papers, and that was when I realized how serious this was. I didn’t question it, though. Emiko was almost like my daughter anyway, and she already called me daddy, so adopting her, giving her a loving home with someone she was comfortable with when her mother passed was an obvious decision, and after a few months of getting through the legal system, she was legally my daughter. It was only a few weeks after it was official that Hana lost her battle, Emiko lost her mother, and I lost my best friend. Emiko moved in with me here in the middle of her first grade year at school, transferred to my school since it’s closer, and here we are.” Akaashi attempted to smile up at Bokuto, but his trembling lips couldn’t hold back the soft sob that ripped through. Bokuto quickly wrapped his arms around the shaking man, holding him close and letting him cry. He rubbed gentle circles into his back and whispered calm reassurances in his ear.

After a few minutes of crying, Akaashi pulled himself back and wiped at his eyes gently, before smiling sadly up at Bokuto.

“I’m sorry for losing my cool, Bokuto-san.” Bokuto reached up and gently wiped away the few tears that Akaashi had missed and smiled softly.

“Don’t apologize, Akaashi. I’m so sorry about Hana, but I know she made the right decision in entrusting Emiko to you. It’s obvious how close you all were, and while I can’t say I know how it feels, I’m sure I can get a grasp on it. You’re doing an amazing job, Akaashi; I have so much respect for you, and I know Emiko loves you from the bottom of her heart. You’ve given her a place to call home after losing her mother, and I’m sure Hana-san is smiling down on both of you from wherever she is.” Bokuto leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to Akaashi’s forehead before smiling warmly at him. Akaashi smiled and pulled Bokuto back into a tight hug, pressing his face into Bokuto’s neck. They held each other quietly for a few minutes, until Emiko came in, dressed in her pajamas, her hair slightly damp.

“Bokuto-san, would you like to finish the story now?” Bokuto and Akaashi pulled away from each other to look at Emiko, and Bokuto smiled warmly.

“I’d love to. After the story though, I should probably head home and let you two get some sleep, okay?” Emiko nodded and grabbed his hand to lead him back into the living room, where the book was waiting. Bokuto grabbed Akaashi’s hand before he was pulled too far away, and the three of them went into the living room together. Akaashi and Bokuto sat on the couch, and Emiko grabbed the book before climbing onto Akaashi’s lap to start reading. As she read, Akaashi rested his head on Bokuto’s shoulder, and Bokuto wrapped his arm lazily around Akaashi’s waist. When the book was finished, Bokuto found it extremely difficult to pull himself away, but he knew he had to get home before it got to be too late. He said goodnight to Emiko, who gave him a tight hug before rushing to her room to wait for her father, and walked to the entryway with Akaashi to say goodnight to him, as well. They stopped before the genkan and Bokuto took the opportunity to hug Akaashi again.

“Goodnight, Akaashi. I’ll see you tomorrow?” He smiled as he felt Akaashi’s arms wrap tightly around his waist, and rubbed his back gently again.

“Yes, I’ll see you tomorrow, Bokuto-san. Thank you for today… Really, thank you. You’re so unbelievably kind.” Akaashi pulled away a bit and pressed his soft lips to Bokuto’s, giving him a gentle goodnight kiss. Bokuto smiled against his lips and kissed him back sweetly. They pulled apart again and Akaashi smiled softly, his eyes twinkling subtly.

“Goodnight, Bokuto-san. Be safe driving home.” Bokuto smiled and gave him one last kiss on the cheek before turning away to get his shoes on.

Driving home, Bokuto couldn’t help but think of Hana. He could only picture her as she had looked in the photo, smiling brightly. He couldn’t imagine her frail and sickly, like Akaashi had described. She sounded like an amazing woman… It was amazing how composed Akaashi was. Even though it had been a while since her passing, Bokuto knew that if he had been in Akaashi’s shoes, he would have been a complete mess. But, he supposed, that’s what being a parent does. Akaashi had to be strong enough to support, care for, and love Emiko after her mom was taken from her. 

Akaashi was truly amazing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for the wait, y'all. I hope you enjoyed, and please feel free to hit me up on [tumblr](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com)! Hopefully my next update won't take as long!!
> 
> (Also, yes, I made Misaki Hana Emiko's mother; just pretend she's a year younger so that she's Akaashi's age shhh)
> 
> (And yes, I based Emiko's reading partner Youichi on Kuramochi Youichi from Daiya no Ace because I love him)


	6. Attached

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, he hated how easily he became attached to people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alrighty everyone, here's another warning for ya'll. We've got another panic attack at the beginning of this chapter (albeit less descriptive than the last) that starts pretty much at the beginning, and ending around "He had to deal with it..."; it's not entirely descriptive, as I said, but I want you all to be safe reading. That being said, there's also an attack at the end, starting at "Bokuto rolled onto his back..." and ending at the end of the chapter. Again, this one isn't descriptive, but I just wanted to be safe. That being said, I have absolutely no excuse for why this took so long to get up, other than an awful case of trying to figure out where this plot is going. I'm not entirely happy with this chapter (it's kinda filler-ish), but I'll try to be better with updates, I promise!

When Akaashi had asked Bokuto if he wanted to go to the zoo with him and Emiko, Bokuto had jumped on the opportunity. However, if he had known that he would end up laying on a bench next to the panda exhibit, trying to stay afloat while his panic tried to pull him under and ignoring the worried expression on Akaashi’s face, along with the confused expression on Emiko’s, the best he could, he would have never agreed to go. This was not what he wanted, not in the slightest bit, but here he was, the familiar numbness washing over him, making his fingertips and toes grow ice cold as he tried to calm his breathing. Akaashi was kind enough to stay close, guarding him from the curious eyes of passersby, and luckily for them, the zoo wasn’t all that crowded that day, but despite being reassured numerous times by Akaashi that he was _absolutely not_ being an inconvenience in any way, Bokuto couldn’t help but feel that way. The zoo was supposed to be fun, full of joy and awe, but here he was, breaking down in front of his boyfriend and said boyfriend’s daughter, all because his damn brain was wired weirdly.

Bokuto was facing the backrest of the bench, refusing to allow Akaashi or Emiko to see his face. He knew he was crying; he could feel the burst of cool air on his cheeks where the warm liquid had created tracks from his wide, scared eyes down to his quivering chin. He’d had attacks when out in public before (since he had no way of knowing when one would come around, he’d gotten used to having to run to the nearest bathroom to find any sort of privacy), but this one had hit him like a truck; one minute, he had been laughing at something Emiko had said, and the next, he suddenly felt that tight, familiar tug in his stomach, flooding his brain with irrational fear and self-doubt. He hadn’t even been able to find a bathroom before his knees had grown weak and his toes numb, so he’d had to settle for the bench closest to him.

He wasn’t sure what brought this one on, really; the past few months had been fine, normal. His team had won their practice match, as well as the other three that had followed; he’d gone on quite a few dates with Akaashi; he’d even introduced Akaashi to Kuroo, Oikawa, Iwaizumi, and Kageyama, when they’d all had drinks along with Hinata, Kuroo’s now-boyfriend Kenma, and all of Akaashi’s work friends. Work was going well, too; he’d picked up a few big scoops, met some really talented kids, and even got a little raise just last week. So why was he here, shaking on a bench in the zoo, making the two people he’d grown to care so much about worry?

He took deep breaths, just as the doctor had instructed him to countless times, but it was apparent to him that his was going to be one of his bad days. _Of course,_ he chided himself, _of course this had to happen with Akaashi and Emiko. Just can’t make things too easy, can ya?_

He was still numb half an hour later, though the small tingles had started in his hands and feet, when he felt a gentle hand start combing through his hair. The fingers were small, delicate, but almost loving as they worked through his gelled spikes. _Not Akaashi…_ Akaashi’s hands were larger, his fingers longer.

“It’s okay, Bokuto-san. It’s okay to cry.” A soft voice at his ear gave Bokuto the answer as to whose hand was in his hair; Emiko’s fingers kept moving, relaxing Bokuto’s tense muscles with every stroke. Bokuto was honestly a bit stunned; he’d never expected this from Emiko, and he was again reminded of just how absolutely mature she seemed at times. He found himself thinking back to what Akaashi had told him about Hana, her mother, and how she had gotten really sick so suddenly. Perhaps that wasn’t the case; maybe the sickness had crept up slowly instead, leaving Emiko to comfort her mother similarly to how she was comforting him now, forcing her to grow up a little faster than children should ever have to in order to ease her mother’s burden a little while she fought back the worst of whatever she had for as long as she could.

Bokuto wanted nothing more than to halt his attack and scoop Emiko into his arms, assuring her that it was okay, that she didn’t have to take care of him, that he was fine. He hoped beyond hope that the thought of this small girl taking on the weight of comforting her loving mother as she grew weaker before her eyes would be enough to allow him to cast off his panic attack… but that wasn’t the case. Simply stopping a panic attack right in the middle was something he couldn’t do, no matter how hard he tried. He had to deal with it, let it wash through his system until it was done, and then he could hold this precious girl, thank her for caring so much.

As he finally started to relax further, some of the feeling returning to parts of his body, he felt another hand at his back, rubbing small circles that he hadn’t felt before. Maybe they had just started, or maybe he had been too numb or too distracted to notice, but he knew from the feel of it that the hand belonged to Akaashi, sweet, beautiful Akaashi, and Bokuto felt his stomach clench a little, from something very different than anxiety. With Emiko still running her fingers through his hair and Akaashi rubbing his back, Bokuto had never felt so safe, so secure, so at home, despite his brain telling him the opposite. When he was finally able to move, he turned over on his back to stare up at these two amazing people, who were looking down at him not with worry, or confusion, or any negativity, but instead with compassion. Even Emiko, whose face was normally so impassive, was watching him with warm eyes as she pulled her hand back.

“Bokuto-san, are you feeling better?” Her voice was soft, light, as if she was worried that speaking too loud would send him back into his attack. Bokuto found himself smiling, despite the wave of exhaustion that was washing over him, and reached out to gently take her hand as he forced himself to sit up.

“I am, thank you very much, Emiko. I’m sorry if I scared you before; sometimes things like this happen for me, and I can’t promise it won’t happen again, but I want to thank you for trying to help. It was very kind of you, and I appreciate it very much.” Bokuto smiled, squeezing her hand gently in his. In response, Emiko’s small arms wrapped around his waist and she buried her face in his chest as she hugged him tight. Bokuto reached up and stroked her hair lightly with one hand as his other rested gently at her back. He looked up at Akaashi slowly, his heart thudding anxiously until he realized a small smile was on Akaashi’s lips as he watched the two of them. Bokuto reached out with the hand that had been in Emiko’s hair to take Akaashi’s hand in his.

“I’m sorry if I worried you; I should have warned you about my attacks, but I’d been feeling so good lately that I just kinda… forgot. I’m sorry.” Bokuto waited quietly for Akaashi’s response, and felt his shoulders relax a bit when Akaashi squeezed his hand.

“There’s no need to apologize, Bokuto-san. I’m glad Emiko and I were here when it happened; I hate to think that you have to go through this alone.” He lightly kissed Bokuto’s fingers, making the latter blush softly as a shy smile crawled across his lips.

“Thank you…” He was honestly so grateful; he’d been afraid that Akaashi would be mad about not knowing, but it seemed like he was very understanding about all of it. Promising Emiko that they would return to the zoo soon, the three of them left as soon as Bokuto felt well enough to stand; he was understandably exhausted, and wanted to get away from the crowded area in order to relax further. They ended up back at Akaashi’s apartment, cuddled together on the couch while “Hercules” played on the TV. Feeling much better than before, though still tired, Bokuto found himself singing along with the musical numbers, especially happy when “I Can Go the Distance” came on, much to Emiko’s enjoyment. She watched Bokuto with wide eyes, pleased that he knew all the words to all the songs, and he even caught her almost smiling a little when he sang along with Meg’s song. After Hercules, Emiko chose to watch the Little Mermaid while they ate dinner (Akaashi offered to order takeout, since neither felt like cooking), and by the time the end credits were rolling, Bokuto was laying on his side, his head in Akaashi’s lap, and Emiko curled up on her side in front of him, passed out. Bokuto himself could barely keep his eyes open, what with Akaashi’s fingers gliding through his hair, which was already down from its usual spikes due to Emiko’s care earlier.

“‘Kaashi… can I sleep here tonight? I don’t think I can drive home…” Bokuto’s words were barely a mumble as he fought off the sleepiness that was making his limbs and eyelids heavy. Akaashi chuckled softly, moving his hand down from its place in Bokuto’s hair to stroke his cheek. Bokuto looked up at him, heart squeezing at the sight of Akaashi’s sweet smile.

“Of course, Bokuto-san. Let me get Emiko to bed first, and then I’ll help you to bed, too.” Bokuto yawned and lifted his head from Akaashi’s lap, allowing him to stand and scoop up his sleeping daughter. After Akaashi walked out of the living room, Bokuto yawned again, a little louder, and laid back, allowing his eyes to shut. He’d just rest, just a little bit…

When Bokuto awoke the next morning, he very quickly realized that he was no longer on the couch before he even opened his eyes. He felt soft sheets against his skin, his head was resting on a very comfortable pillow, and when he shifted a little, the weight holding down his left side became apparent when he couldn’t move far. Cracking one eye open, he took in his surroundings. He was in Akaashi’s room, laying in Akaashi’s bed, with the man himself snuggled up to his side. Suddenly, two things dawned on him: one, he was _in Akaashi’s bed with Akaashi for the first time ever_ and two, he had absolutely no idea how he had gotten there. The only thing he could think was… Had Akaashi _carried_ him? Bokuto laid still, eyes wide as he stared up at the ceiling. There was no way Akaashi could’ve carried him; the man wasn’t exactly a twig, but Bokuto was pretty built, thus making him pretty heavy. But for some reason, the idea of Akaashi being able to carry him sent a small, pleasant shiver down his spine. Oh, how he hoped it was true… 

A little later, Akaashi stirred beside him, but instead of getting up or moving away, he grumbled sleepily and snuggled closer, his hand gripping Bokuto’s shirt tighter as he slowly raised his head, his face pressing lightly against Bokuto’s neck. The latter looked down, careful not to disturb his sleepy boyfriend, and smiled softly. Akaashi’s hair was a mess, and he had a little spot of dried drool at the corner of his mouth, but he was still beautiful, oh so beautiful. Sunlight cascaded down on the two of them, softened by the light blue curtains covering the window, causing the ends of Akaashi’s dark hair to glow in a sort-of halo, giving him an almost angel-like appearance.

Bokuto finally had to look away, the slight strain in his neck caused by the odd angle his head was turned in getting to be a little too much. He rested back on the pillow, eyes cast up toward the ceiling as memories from the previous day slowly filtered into his thoughts. His tired smile slowly fell from his lips upon remembering his panic attack; Akaashi had said he hadn’t been a burden, but Bokuto knew that wasn’t true, it couldn’t be. He felt selfish for taking away what was supposed to be a fun day at the zoo with Emiko; they’d only been there for an hour, damn it, and had to leave so soon all because of him. He hated feeling like an inconvenience, but more than that, he hated when people found out that he was broken.Years of therapy had helped tremendously with the anxiety he used to deal with daily, but it seemed like no matter how much better with it he got, the panic attacks never went away. Only a few people knew about his panic attacks, about the anxiety he had worked so hard to overcome, and while some had stayed, acting like they didn’t see it as a problem, others had left, claiming they didn’t want to be caught up in something they didn’t know about. Most those whom had left had been previous lovers, who Bokuto allowed himself to trust, only to have his heart broken the second they closed themselves off to him. He’d learned to keep his secret under wraps, figuring it was better to handle these things alone than to burden anyone else. He usually didn’t tell those who knew about his attacks when he had one, even though most of the time, they could figure it out anyway, simply because he didn’t want them to pause their lives just for him.

The sharp, coppery taste of blood interrupted his thoughts, alerting him to the hole he had been starting to create in his bottom lip from where he had been worrying it between his teeth. He quickly pulled his lip into his mouth, trying to clean the blood from his wound before Akaashi woke up and noticed. The last thing he wanted was for Akaashi to worry about him, and he knew that a bloody lip would definitely make that happen. He frowned at the soft sting of his bite and rubbed his face with the hand that wasn’t pinned under Akaashi; he hadn’t bitten his lip bloody in so long, not since he’d managed to get over the worst of his anxiety. Why was it starting up again? Why now?

Before he could allow himself to delve back into his own head, the soft creak of the door opening sounded through the room. He looked up, spotting a pajama-clad Emiko, rubbing her eye tiredly from her position in the doorway.

“Bokuto-san? I’m hungry…” Her voice was softer than usual, a little raspy from the sleep still in her system. Her hair was a little messy, tangled in some spots, and she had a drool spot on the corner of her mouth to match her father’s. Bokuto let his lip go to smile softly at this adorable girl, but before he could answer, Akaashi shifted against his side and sat up slowly, letting out a long yawn as he stretched his arms and back. Bokuto looked up at his boyfriend, his smile a little wider. Akaashi looked down at him and smiled warmly, rubbing at the drool spot on his face.

“Good morning, Bokuto-san. Did you sleep well?” Bokuto couldn’t find it in himself to answer; he was much too distracted by his gorgeous boyfriend. Akaashi chuckled softly at Bokuto’s response (or lackthereof) and stretched one more time before getting up.

“Come on, I’ll make breakfast.” Akaashi smiled back at him as he walked to the door, then turned to his sleepy daughter to scoop her up and carry her toward the kitchen, softly asking how she slept. Bokuto felt his anxiety slowly fade into the background of his mind for the time being as he got up and stretched, as well. He felt a little weird in just his shirt and boxers (had Akaashi undressed him last night?), but he hardly had a choice, and didn't want to put on his jeans from the day before, so he just walked out to the kitchen to join the others.

He’s greeted by the sound of Akaashi humming softly as he starts getting ingredients out to prepare breakfast. Bokuto watched quietly for a couple seconds, not wanting to interrupt Akaashi’s slightly offkey humming right away, but Emiko noticed him after a short while and waved sleepily from her spot on the kitchen counter, catching her father’s attention. Akaashi turned and smiled at Bokuto, his green eyes warm and inviting.

“Would you like to help with breakfast?” As if Bokuto could say no to that offer… Bokuto smiled and walked over to the sink to wash his hands.

“What do you want me to do? Not to brag, but I make a mean miso soup, and certainly know my way around a rice cooker.” He chuckled and dried his hands before turning to his boyfriend, waiting for an answer.

“Well then, it would be wrong of me to have you make anything but the soup and rice, wouldn’t it?” Akaashi asked teasingly, his lips turned up in a coy smile. Bokuto laughed and walked over to start preparations.

The two cooked quietly, managing to maneuver around each other with little to no difficulty, almost like they were performing a dance that they had perfected. Emiko watched quietly, kicking her feet lazily and yawning every so often. Finally, when the food was ready, they all sat down and ate, still just as quiet. After finishing and cleaning up, Bokuto smiled down at Emiko.

“Hey, kiddo, wanna do something today? I have to stop by a summer training camp for a volleyball team a little later today, but I’d love to make up for yesterday.” He really did feel bad about having to make them all leave the zoo so early; he was just glad that she was on summer break, giving him lots of time to make it up to her.

Emiko looked up at him, a little intrigued.

“Volleyball?” She asked quietly, a glimmer in her eye. Bokuto chuckled, rubbing his neck.

“Tell you what, if it’s okay with your dad, we can all do something fun, and then you two can come with me while I go scout this team and watch their practice match. How does that sound?” Emiko’s eyes went wide, all sleepiness washed away and replaced with utter excitement. She turned toward Akaashi quickly, silently begging him to say yes. Akaashi chuckled and nodded.

“That sounds wonderful, Bokuto-san. I’m sure Emiko would like that very much, wouldn’t you?” Emiko nodded quickly and ran to grab her father’s hand.

“Daddy, we have to get dressed, come on!” Bokuto laughed at the pair as he stood back up from his crouch.

“I have to get home and freshen up, so how about I come back and pick you two up when I’m done, like yesterday?” Emiko nodded enthusiastically and continued tugging on her father’s hand, nearly dragging him away. Akaashi laughed and Bokuto hurried over to give him a kiss goodbye.

“I’ll see you soon.” Bokuto beamed and Akaashi nodded, smiling warmly.

“Drive safe, Bokuto-san.”

With that, Bokuto pulled his shoes on and walked out to where Akaashi had parked his car yesterday. He couldn’t stop smiling the entire drive home, even when some asshole cut him off without using their blinker.

When he got into his apartment, he showered quickly and got dressed in a nice button-up and slacks; he had to look decent for the interview in order to maintain a professional air about him. After brushing his teeth and gelling up his hair like usual, he slipped on his loafers and went back to Akaashi’s apartment. He walked to their door and knocked, humming to himself as he waited for Akaashi to open the door. He looked up as the door opened and smiled warmly. Akaashi was dressed similarly to him, in a nice baby blue button-up and khakis. Akaashi backed up to let him in, smiling.

“You know, I should just get you a key.” He chuckled softly, and Bokuto felt heat rise to his cheeks. A key to Akaashi’s apartment?

“Do you mean that? If so, I can give you the spare key to my apartment, too!” Bokuto couldn’t help his excited shouting; he hadn’t ever thought about getting the key to his boyfriend’s apartment before, and it felt like a really big important step that he was definitely willing to take. Akaashi chuckled softly at his enthusiasm and pecked his cheek lightly.

“I’ll have to get another key made, but I’m definitely serious. I mean, you do come over a lot; it’d be easier if you could just let yourself in, wouldn’t it?” Akaashi’s smile was almost enough to make Bokuto melt down into his shoes. Bokuto nodded quickly and beamed, too happy for words.

“Daddy, I finished brushing my teeth.” The two men turned toward Emiko, and Bokuto beamed.

“Emiko, you look so adorable! Is that the firefly clip I gave you last month?” Bokuto’s eyes rested on the small clip holding Emiko’s bangs back from her face, which was turning a light pink as she nodded.

“Yes, Bokuto-san, I like it a lot, and it matches my dress.” She looked down at her adorable periwinkle summer dress, which indeed matched the hair clip. She walked over to the two smiling men to pull on her sandals before standing to grab her father’s hand.

“What are we doing before the volleyball practice, Bokuto-san?” She asked quietly, looking up at him in curiosity.

“Well, I thought maybe we could stop by and see Kuroo-san and Azumane-san at the tattoo shop, and maybe get some pastries with them. Does that sound okay?” At the sound of Asahi’s name, Emiko’s eyes lit up excitedly, and she was nodding before Bokuto even finished his question. He chuckled and nodded, and they all walked out to his car. Akaashi had left Emiko’s car seat in Bokuto’s car yesterday, so it was quick work getting in the car and driving off to the Cat’s Claw. On the way there, Akaashi told Bokuto about a call from the mother of Emiko’s schoolmate Youichi, asking if she would like to meet up for a playdate at some point during their summer break. Bokuto found himself glancing back at Emiko in the rearview mirror and smiled knowingly when he noticed the small blush creeping up on her cheeks as Akaashi continued talking. Over the past three months, ever since their partner reading session, he’d been hearing more and more about Emiko’s new friend Youichi, and Bokuto thought it was adorable.

By the time they reached the tattoo shop, Bokuto’s stomach was already rumbling a little in anticipation for Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s baking. He parked in the lot next to the tattoo shop and shut off the car before the three went into the shop to get Kuroo and Asahi. As they walked in, a bright, cheery voice greeted them from behind the front desk.

“Welcome to the Cat’s Claw! Oh, Bokuto, my man!” Bokuto looked over and smiled at the small man who jumped up from his seat to greet them.

“Noya, hey, I didn’t know you’d be in today! Where’s Tsukishima?” They bumped fists, smiling wide at each other.

“Tsukishima’s off today, so I’m up at the front since I’m better with customers than Ryuu.” He snickered into his hand before finally noticing the two people standing next to Bokuto. Bokuto made a quick noise as he remembered that he had to introduce Nishinoya to Akaashi and Emiko.

“Oh! Nishinoya, this is my boyfriend, Akaashi, and his daughter, Emiko!” He gestured to them and Akaashi smiled softly.

“Hello, Nishinoya-san, it’s nice to meet you.” Akaashi bowed a bit, formal as ever. He lightly tapped Emiko’s shoulder, silently telling her to greet Nishinoya as well. She bowed a bit, but otherwise stayed silent, slightly hiding behind Akaashi. Nishinoya beamed and patted Akaashi’s shoulder.

“No need to be so formal, Akaashi! You can just call me Noya!” Akaashi chuckled softly and nodded before Bokuto cut in.

“Are Asahi and Kuroo busy with customers right now?” Noya looked over at him before pursing his lips in thought.

“Hm… Asahi has a touch-up appointment right now, but I think he’s almost done. Kuroo’s probably back in the break room; want me to go get him?” Bokuto nodded and Noya hurried off, leaving them alone in the front. Emiko moved from behind Akaashi’s leg and ran her hands down the front of her sundress, fixing any wrinkles that were present. Over the past three months, she had grown pretty fond of Kuroo, mostly because he liked calling her princess and always offered to draw her pictures. She wasn’t as attached to him as she was to Asahi, but the bond was pretty apparent. After a few minutes, Noya came bounding back out from the back with Kuroo close behind. Bokuto beamed happily as his best friend came into view, and he quickly bounced over to tackle him in a bone-crushing hug.

“Kuroo!” He shouted, unable to calm his enthusiasm. Kuroo chuckled and hugged him back, almost just as tight. After letting go, Kuroo’s gaze drifted to Akaashi and Emiko, and his usual smirk grew into a warm smile.

“Hey there, Akaashi.” He nodded, a gesture returned to him by Akaashi with a smile, and his gaze fell on Emiko. “And hello to you, princess. You look so cute today!” Emiko’s cheeks turned red at the compliment and she turned her head in embarrassment, her fingers playing with the front of her dress.

“Thank you, Kuroo-san…” Her voice was barely above a whisper, almost too quiet for any of them to hear. Kuroo chuckled softly and stretched his arms above his head.

“Well, Asahi shouldn’t be too long, but if you want, we can head over to the bakery and order something while we wait?” The other three agreed and set off on their way, saying goodbye to Noya as the left.

Upon entering the Grand King Bakery, they were greeted by an enthusiastic Oikawa from behind the case full of fresh pastries, cakes, and cookies.

“Bokuto-chan, Kuroo-chan, welcome! Oh, and you brought Aka-chan, too!” He gasped suddenly, eyes wide as they fell on Emiko. Emiko had yet to meet Oikawa and Iwaizumi, despite Oikawa’s constant requests to meet her. “You must be Emiko-chan! You’re so cute~!” he cooed, hurrying out from behind the counter. Emiko grabbed Akaashi’s shirt quickly, moving behind him like she did for Noya. Oikawa stopped a short distance from her, beaming brightly as he held his hand out.

“I’m Oikawa! I’ve heard so much about you from Bokuto-chan; it’s a pleasure to meet you!” Emiko eyed his hand wearily before slowly reaching out to take it gently.

“Hello, Oikawa-san…” she whispered, her eyes slowly trailing up to his face. She let go of his hand in favor of playing with her dress again, her eyes drifting back down to the floor. Oikawa smiled, completely undeterred by her shyness, and went back to the display case.

“So, what can I get for you all today? We’re out of lemon poppyseed muffins and mint green tea cookies, but Iwa-chan’s in the back baking some up right now, so if you’d like some, they’ll be ready in about an hour!”

They ended up getting coffee for the three of them (as well as for Asahi), milk and a rose-scented raspberry cupcake for Emiko, a chocolate cherry muffin for Bokuto, banana nut bread for Kuroo, milkbread for Akaashi (upon Oikawa’s recommendation), and a citrus muffin for Asahi. The four of them took a table outside, enjoying the warm day from beneath a pastel green umbrella, decorated with the bakery’s logo. Oikawa joined them for a short while after calling Yamaguchi, his newest employee, to the front to watch the register for him.

“So, Emiko, I heard you play on Bokuto-chan’s volleyball team. What position do you play?” Oikawa asked, smiling warmly as he leaned his elbows on the table, his head resting in the palm of his hand. Emiko looked up from her cupcake, licking a bit of frosting from the corner of her mouth before answering.

“Wing-spiker. I’m gonna be the ace, like Bokuto-san and Azumane-san were.” Her serious expression never faltered as she made her statement, and Oikawa chuckled softly.

“You know, my Iwa-chan was the ace, too. Maybe later, if you’re still here when he’s all done baking, you can meet him! He’s kinda grumpy sometimes, but he’s nice if you’re nice to him.” Oikawa’s eyes glimmered as he spoke about his fiancé, his smile turning warm and loving. Bokuto smiled as he watched Oikawa talk about their high school days; he couldn’t help but wish that he had as close of a bond to Akaashi as Oikawa had with Iwaizumi, but he supposed that it couldn’t be helped, since the two had been best friends since childhood, after all.

Asahi soon joined them, much to the delight of Emiko, who jumped up from her seat to capture the large man in a hug. He chuckled and scooped her up to hug her, his face lit up in a happy smile. He sat in the empty seat next to her and accepted his coffee with a ‘thank you’ and a grateful smile. After taking a sip, he relaxed back and sighed softly.

“Man, that touch up was difficult. She had a watercolor lion on her ribcage, and since watercolors aren’t my strong suit, I had to be extra careful. I don’t say this often, but I wish Tanaka had been in today; watercolors are his strong suit.” Asahi chuckled softly, rubbing his neck before taking a bite of his muffin.

After talking about customers for a while, Kuroo turned his attention to Akaashi and Bokuto, smiling warmly.

“So, how was the zoo yesterday? I know Bokuto was excited to go with you guys; it was all he’d talk about for the past few days.” Bokuto felt his smile falter and he found himself having to look away, guilt creeping up his spine. Akaashi glanced up at him quietly before looking back at Kuroo.

“Ah, it was fun. We got to see pandas and lions, and Emiko’s favorite: red pandas. Isn’t that right, sweetheart?” Akaashi smiled down at Emiko, who nodded quickly. Bokuto looked up at the two, chewing on his lip before forcing what he hoped was a happy smile.

“Yeah, it was lots of fun! Afterwards, we went home and watched Hercules and The Little Mermaid, and I dazzled both of them with my singing.” Akaashi looked over at Bokuto and smiled warmly as he reached out to stroke his cheek.

“You certainly did; I was very impressed, Bokuto-san.” Bokuto felt his cheeks grow warm, and his forced smile quickly melted into a genuine one as he leaned into Akaashi’s touch. A small whine escaped Oikawa’s lips and he stood quickly.

“Seeing how lovey-dovey you two are makes me miss Iwa-chan! I’ll be right back!” He rushed inside and the four men laughed in his wake.

They only stayed a bit longer, long enough to chat with Iwaizumi after Oikawa dragged him outside, but soon, Kuroo and Asahi had to return to the tattoo shop and Bokuto had to head to the high school that was hosting summer training for the four strongest volleyball teams in the area. They all said their goodbyes, leaving each other with promises to meet up again soon. Emiko looked reluctant to let go of Asahi, but eventually she allowed herself to be pulled from his arms by Akaashi. Asahi promised to visit with Yachi soon, and it was enough to get Emiko to get into Bokuto’s car without a fight.

As they drove to the high school, Bokuto glanced over at Akaashi, who was watching the scenery fly past from his window.

“Hey, Akaashi?” Bokuto asked, getting his boyfriend’s attention before continuing. “Thanks for not telling them about yesterday… I know they would worry too much if they knew I had an attack, and I didn’t want to burden them with that.” Akaashi looked over at Bokuto before reaching out to lightly lay his hand on Bokuto’s thigh.

“Bokuto-san, I’m positive you wouldn’t have been a burden for them. I didn’t say anything simply because it wasn’t my place to do so, but if you don’t want to tell them at all, I will support your decision.” He rubbed Bokuto’s thigh with his thumb and gave his a soft smile. Bokuto smiled back at him for a second before turning back to the road, allowing them to fall into another comfortable silence.

They arrived at the high school and Bokuto hurried ahead to ask for permission from the coaches to let Akaashi and Emiko sit in and watch some practice matches between the teams while he interviewed the aces of each team. The coaches agreed easily, and the two sat on the bleachers to watch while Bokuto got his work done. There were a lot of promising players this season, a fact that Bokuto was well aware of already, but just observing the games going on really set it in stone for him, and a pang of nostalgia hit him like a ton of bricks. He usually found himself missing volleyball when he coached his team, but being at a summer training session like this really hit him hard. He occasionally regretted his decision to pursue journalism instead of a spot on a professional volleyball team, but he knew he made the right choice in the end.

His interviews went fairly smooth, even when he interviewed a third year who reminded him a lot of Ushijima Wakatoshi, the ace of Japan’s Olympic volleyball team. The boy was extremely serious, but obviously very passionate about volleyball. He rejoined Akaashi and Emiko at the bleachers and smiled warmly.

“The coaches said we can stay as long as we want to watch; how does that sound, Emiko?” The girl looked up at him and nodded quickly before looking back at the game before them, eyes sharp with concentration. Bokuto smiled and sat next to her and they watched the next few games, leaving only after Bokuto noticed that the sun was starting to set. He was sure to thank the coaches again before they left. The drive back to Akaashi’s apartment was far from silent, as Emiko talked about how good the teams were, and how excited she was to play again soon.

He dropped the two off at the apartment and walked them to their door, giving Akaashi a kiss and Emiko a kiss on her head before saying goodnight. He wanted to stay again, but he had work the next day, and had already stayed the night before; the last thing he wanted was to further impose himself. Or, at least, that was what he told himself upon returning to his very quiet, very dark apartment. He found himself already missing Akaashi’s smile and Emiko’s bluntness as he prepared dinner, and discovered that sitting in front of his TV to eat didn’t feel nearly as comforting as sitting at Akaashi’s dinner table. Despite only having spent the night for the first time the previous night, he went to bed feeling… lonesome. He already missed the feeling of Akaashi in his arms, and knowing that he would wake the next day and not be able to see Akaashi until after work was almost too much.

Bokuto rolled onto his side to stare at the picture he now had on his bedside table of him, Akaashi, and Emiko when they visited the aquarium the previous month. Sometimes, he hated how easily he became attached to people. He’d been that way with Kuroo when they first became friends, as well as with a couple of his previous lovers, and now he knew he was getting too attached to Akaashi too quickly. They’d only been dating for three months, yet he knew that if they were to break things off anytime soon, he’d fall back into the pit of despair he always fell into when he was left alone again. He couldn’t help but think of his past relationships; usually, after finding out about his attacks, they never distanced themselves right away, but would slowly do it over time. Just because Akaashi seemed fine with him today didn’t mean that he’d be okay in the future. Bokuto was scared he’d leave like all the others did, if he was honest with himself. He couldn’t let his attachment get worse, just in case. He had to protect himself this time… He had to. But he liked Akaashi so much… maybe even loved him. He couldn’t just stop those feelings from growing.

Bokuto rolled onto his back and groaned at the ceiling, grinding the heels of his palms into his eyes before grabbing his phone.

**> Me (10:37 p.m.): akaashi found out about my attack s yesterday he lied about the zoo we were onky able to stay for an hour because my fcuking anxiety ruine dit and i had anattack after only like an hour and waht if he hates me kuroo what doi do**

Bokuto hadn’t realized his hands were shaking until he finished typing, but couldn’t find it in himself to fix his mistakes before sending off the message. He covered his eyes and groaned again. He could feel another damn attack coming, and just hoped beyond hope that it would at least be a small one. A response came quickly, forcing Bokuto to pull his hands from his eyes to read it.

**> Kuroo <3 (10:38 p.m.): bo, akaashi definitely likes you, trust me. do you need to call me? or do you want me to come over? because i can, ill just have to take kenma home first or something**

**> Me (10:41 p.m.): no youdon t have to come ill br okay stya with kenma**

**> Kuroo <3 (10:41 p.m.): im coming over, ill be there soon**

Bokuto sighed and dropped his phone to the bed before staring up at the ceiling. Now he was really worried; he’d done so well, and now he was getting panic attacks two days in a row? Maybe he needed to give his therapist a call sometime soon…

After an amount of time that Bokuto couldn’t keep track of, he heard his front door open and close, and soon after, Kuroo was by his side, running a hand through Bokuto’s hair.

“Hey, Bo… How’re you feeling, one to ten, one being just a little bad, ten being really bad.” Kuroo’s voice was soft and soothing, and Bokuto felt a little of his tension lessening. He allowed his eyes to drift from the ceiling to his friend’s face, barely illuminated from the bit of moonlight drifting into his room.

“Four…” he whispered. He wasn’t lying; it wasn’t too bad, thankfully, but enough that it really rattled him. The added worry that this hadn’t happened in a while definitely wasn’t helping, but with Kuroo there, it wasn’t as bad. Bokuto sniffled softly and finally allowed himself to start sobbing.

“I-I don’t wanna lo-lose him, Kuroo!” he wailed, surprising himself almost as much as he surprised Kuroo. “Th-they always leave af-ter finding ou-ou-out, I can’t do this!” Kuroo quickly got in the bed to hold Bokuto close, rubbing soothing circles into his back.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay… Akaashi wouldn’t do that, Bo, he’s a good guy… This is just the anxiety talking, okay? Akaashi’s not gonna leave like the others, I promise.” Bokuto continued sobbing into Kuroo’s chest, too worked up to reply to his words of comfort. He knew Kuroo was right that it was just his anxiety making him think this way, but he couldn’t help it; the negative voice in his head was always more convincing than anyone else. His attack that he’d deemed a four was suddenly closer to a seven, and he was incredibly grateful that Kuroo had ignored his request to stay away; he didn’t think he’d have been able to get through this one alone. Eventually, his body had finally tired itself out, and he fell asleep in Kuroo’s arms, still sniffling lightly as he guiltily thought of how much he’d rather be in Akaashi’s.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all again for reading, and I'm sorry for the angst that popped up in this chapter! I'm still trying to figure out where to go with this story, but I think I have a general direction, so I'm kinda sorry to say that it'll probably only get more angsty from here! As always, please feel free to chat me up on [tumblr](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com)!


	7. Apology

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I know your brain’s going a mile a minute over there, and all I'm gonna say is that whatever you're thinking, you should tell Akaashi.” Kuroo’s voice drifted over, more gentle than before, coaxing Bokuto to lift his head and look at his best friend. He was right, again… He really should tell Akaashi, probably sooner rather than later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um... Hi, everyone. *sweats* So, I know it's been a really, really long time since I've updated, and I have no excuse outside writer's block and some personal stuff that went down in September that I'm still kinda getting over (if you follow me on tumblr, you've probably caught a whiff of it by now lol). So, I'm not completely happy with this chapter (I'm not good at angst, lord help me), but I hope you all enjoy it, and I'm so, so, so sorry it took so long for me to update; I've literally had the draft of this chapter sitting in my google docs since like November, and I've been adding a little at a time until today, when I hammered out like 2000+ words. I hope it doesn't disappoint too much!

His anxiety was being stubborn, and he wasn’t happy about it. All Bokuto wanted was to go back to spending carefree time with Akaashi and Emiko, but ever since that trip to the zoo, he felt himself being more and more cautious around the two, always throwing on overly-enthusiastic smiles and talking louder than normal to try and make up for the sense of fear that was twisting his gut. He should’ve known, however, that Akaashi was too smart to fall for it. Akaashi was able to catch the momentary slips in Bokuto’s façade, the few seconds when his wide smile, bright and artificial like fluorescent lights, would dim just enough to allow the nervousness in his eyes to be noticed. He hadn’t asked Bokuto about it yet, and for that, Bokuto was grateful. He was sure that Akaashi knew it most likely had to do with their zoo trip, and that was why he wasn’t pushing him to speak up; Akaashi was smart like that. That just left him with Kuroo to spill his guts to, and that had been happening much more frequently within the two weeks since the incident, including the night of another practice match, which they’d barely lost.

“I just feel so bad, Kuroo, they played so hard, and just that little misjudgement of where that serve was gonna go… ugh! They were so close!” Bokuto’s whines rang throughout Kuroo’s apartment from where he was laying on the couch, arm thrown over his eyes in a dramatic (but fitting) pose. Kuroo chuckled from where he was standing in the kitchen, heating up leftovers from the night before.

“Bo, stop yelling or my neighbors might call the cops on us again.” Kuroo snickered and Bokuto let out a slightly quieter whine.

“That wasn't my fault; how am I not supposed to celebrate my awesome Mariokart wins?” He looked up at Kuroo, who was smiling and rolling his eyes.

“I think you were louder when you were complaining about losing magnificently.” Bokuto pouted and threw a pillow at him, but stayed quiet.

They waited in silence as the microwave heated up their food, until Bokuto finally spoke again.

“How're things going with Kenma? I haven't seen him in a while.” He glanced up at Kuroo, whose smile softened a little.

“It's going fine; he's just been busy at the rescue lately. He's training a new employee, and he's… a bit of a handful.” He chuckled softly and shook his head before looking over at Bokuto. “Maybe we could go on a double date sometime; I’m sure Kenma would be up for it. Emiko could even come with us, if you want.”

Bokuto glanced away, playing with his fingers nervously.

“Yeah, maybe. I'll… I'll ask him.” He smiled nervously, hoping Kuroo wouldn't push it. But of course, he did anyway.

“Bo, you've gotta stop avoiding him. I know you're scared because of what happened at the zoo, but from what you've told me, he hasn't been acting any differently. If anything, he's been really supportive about it. I'm not gonna push anything, but I think you should at least-”

“No!” Bokuto interjected quickly, now sitting up straight, eyes wide. “No, Kuroo, you don't get it! I know he's being really awesome and he's really the best boyfriend in the entire world, but that's the problem! He's too good for me Kuroo, he doesn't need the stress of raising a daughter and taking care of me all at the same time! I can't force him to do that!”

Kuroo stared at him, wide-eyed in surprise at his sudden outburst. It was silent between them for a few moments as Kuroo tried to gather his thoughts enough to form a reply. Bokuto was loud and yelled a lot, that was a given, but Kuroo still wasn't used to outbursts like that from him. Finally, he spoke.

“Bo… I'm sorry, you're right: I really _don't_ understand. But I do know that Akaashi likes you a lot, at least from what I've seen and heard, and I don't know how he'd feel to be placed on a pedestal like that. He's only human, Bo. Yeah, he might be better than a lot of people, but that doesn't change this fact. Plus, it's not fair to Emiko; that munchkin adores you.”

Bokuto guiltily played with a couch pillow, eyes cast down as he took in what Kuroo was saying. He knew he was right, but his brain wasn't cooperating in accepting that fact. He really did feel like Akaashi was too good for him, “only human” or not. And Emiko… she'd already gone through so much. A girl as young as her shouldn't have to deal with everything that had been put on her, and Bokuto certainly didn't want to make it worse.

“I know your brain’s going a mile a minute over there, and all I'm gonna say is that whatever you're thinking, you should tell Akaashi.” Kuroo’s voice drifted over, more gentle than before, coaxing Bokuto to lift his head and look at his best friend. He was right, again… He really should tell Akaashi, probably sooner rather than later.

“I know, Kuroo. I'll talk to him soon, I promise.” Bokuto’s voice was shakier than he'd expected, but not enough to make his voice crack. He fell silent again and turned toward the television, wanting to watch something to get his mind off everything, at least for the night. He did make sure the send a text Akaashi’s way before it got too late, however, asking if he was free the next day. His heart beat a little stronger in his chest when he got a reply back, simply stating, “Of course, Bokuto-san.”

 

* * *

 

They didn't have practice the next day, to serve as a rest day since they had a practice match the day before, so Bokuto found himself staying later than usual at work. He knew he'd just be sitting at home, staring at the clock until it ticked to the time practice usually ended, and thus the time that he could go to Akaashi’s apartment. That being said, he still found himself staring at the clock instead of doing the work he should have been doing. He still had another 45 minutes to go, and he was getting antsy.

He stood from his desk and stretched, hoping that maybe if he walked around a bit, he'd be able to focus on his most recent article instead of the time. He jogged around the office, grateful that most had already gone home for the day. It was one of the things he loved about his job: the days started early, but that meant that they ended early, too.

He got back to his desk, deflating when he saw that only five minutes had gone by in the time that he was away. He sat back down heavily in his rolley chair, staring at his computer screen like it had a gross virus that he didn't particularly want to deal with. Maybe he could leave a little early… Akaashi usually got to practice early anyway, which meant that he was done with his grading and preparations earlier than he thought, and it would take a little time to actually get over to his apartment…

Before his mind could decide, Bokuto shut off his computer, threw on his jacket, and grabbed his bag in quick succession, then was out the door in under a minute. He hurried to the train station, narrowly avoiding a collision with a mother trying to get her kid to stop running around, but only threw back an apology over his shoulder; he hadn't the time to stop and apologize properly, or rather, he hadn't the patience. He wanted to see Akaashi, to tell him everything and lay it all out there and finally get it off his chest. He was ready for rejection due to his actions as of late, although not looking forward to it, but he just wanted to let Akaashi have the final say.

He barely made it on the train in time, and was too wired to sit down, so he stood and watched the city flash by out the windows. He didn't have a plan about what to say, but he figured just starting that the beginning would be good.

Before he knew it, he was having to get off the train, finally at the stop closest to Akaashi’s apartment. He hurried out, hoping he remembered the way. He'd only ever driven there from his own apartment previously, and since he chose to take the train to work most days, he now had to figure out the fastest route to the building from the station. He looked around, trying to find any familiar landmarks, before starting off in the direction he thought was best. He wished he had Akaashi’s address to type into the GPS on his phone, and while he could probably text Akaashi to ask for it, he wasn't thinking about easy solutions like that. All he could think about was getting to Akaashi.

It took him a while, having found himself in unfamiliar parts of city more than once, but eventually he saw Akaashi’s apartment complex on the horizon, and he started running. All the things he needed to say raced through his mind, but he knew the first thing he had to do was apologize. He'd been an awful boyfriend, and he needed to make sure Akaashi knew that he was aware of it.

He finally reached the building, out of breath and sweaty, but that didn't deter him from going up to Akaashi’s floor and standing in front of his door. Bokuto hesitated, hand posed above the painted wood like he was going to knock, while his thoughts flew through his brain. He needed to make sure he remembered everything, that way he wouldn't stumble over his words while they talked. Finally, he knocked.

Akaashi answered the door after only a few seconds, but it felt like years to Bokuto. He'd almost been ready to just chicken out and leave, but forced himself to stay. Akaashi looked up at him, surprise evident in the widening of his eyes and small gaps of his mouth, but soon, he was smiling, eyes gentle and shining.

“Bokuto-san, you're earlier than I was expecting. Please, come in.” He moved back out of the doorway and Bokuto walked inside, wringing his hands nervously.

“Sorry I'm so early, Akaashi; I just couldn't wait to see you.” He looked back as Akaashi closed the door, and felt his heart swell at the faint dusting of pink on Akaashi’s cheekbones.

“I don't mind at all, Bokuto-san; I couldn't wait to see you, either.”

They walked to the living room after Bokuto removed his shoes, where Emiko was working on some homework. At the sight of Bokuto, she jumped up and ran to hug him tight, face buried in his shirt. Bokuto hugged her back tightly, a small, sad smile gracing his lips. He was glad Emiko was to the point where she felt comfortable hugging him, but he also felt incredibly guilty. It'd only been two weeks that he'd been avoiding them outside practice, but it was a long two weeks, and probably felt even longer to the young girl currently gripping his shirt like she never wanted to let go. Bokuto ran his fingers through her hair, marveling at how long it had gotten in just the time he knew her. He placed a soft kiss on the top of her head before slowly letting go, and while she sat back down before her homework, he and Akaashi sat on the couch. Bokuto cleared his throat, twisting his fingers nervously until Akaashi placed a gentle, supportive hand on his knee. Bokuto gave him a small appreciative smile before taking a deep breath and looking back down at his hands.

“I'm so sorry, Akaashi, Emiko… I was being real selfish and rotten, and I shouldn't have avoided you two like that. You both mean the world to me, and after our trip to the zoo, I didn't want the possibility of having that happen again, so I thought I'd try and distance myself a little. It was wrong, I know, but I was scared and I didn't want you two to think less of me or pity me, and I definitely didn't want you to worry about me… I'm really sorry.” Bokuto’s voice, while strong through the majority of his apology, cracked on the last sorry, and he felt Akaashi squeeze his knee gently.

“Bokuto-san, there's no need to apologize. Emiko and I both understand how hard dealing with anxiety can be, and sometimes it leads to making decisions that don't work out well. We don't pity or think less of you, I promise. As for worrying, of course we're going to worry; we both care for you very much, and it hurts to see you in this state. We don't want you to think less of yourself, either.” Akaashi’s thumb rubbed Bokuto’s knee gently as he spoke, soft, comforting strokes that helped him relax a bit more and coaxed him to look up at his two most important people. Emiko moved to stand beside him and wrapped her arms around his neck silently, burying her face in his neck. Bokuto wrapped an arm around her, and wrapped the other around Akaashi. They stayed close together for a while, silent except for the occasional sniffle (usually from Bokuto), and Bokuto’d never felt more at home. He still couldn't forgive himself, not yet, but it meant the world to him that Akaashi and Emiko could.

Finally they separated, and both Emiko and Akaashi planted soft kisses on Bokuto’s cheeks before moving away completely, prompting a small smile to form on Bokuto’s lips as he wiped at his eyes. Emiko went back to doing her homework and Akaashi stood from the couch.

“Are you hungry, Bokuto-san? We were thinking of having udon soup tonight, if you'd like to join us.” Akaashi’s smile was warm, his eyes crinkling softly in a way that made Bokuto’s heart stutter. They'd been dating for a while now, but he'd probably never get over that smile.

“Of course I'll stay, if you'll have me. Do you need help cooking? I could chop up the vegetables, if you want.” Bokuto stood and brushed at his slacks, straightening out the wrinkles that had formed.

“That sounds lovely, Bokuto-san.” Akaashi smiled a bit wider and started walking to the kitchen, prompting Bokuto to follow quickly.

They prepared dinner together in a comfortable silence, only the sounds of chopping and mixing filling the air between them until Bokuto finally spoke.

“Kuroo wanted to know if you'd wanna go on a double date with him and Kenma sometime soon; he said Emiko was welcome to come too, if you want.” Bokuto glanced over at Akaashi as he spoke, pausing his chopping of the green onions. Akaashi hummed softly before smiling.

“That sounds nice. When was he thinking of doing it? I'm sure Yachi wouldn't mind watching Emiko for a while.”

Bokuto beamed happily, turning back to his vegetables.

“He didn't give me an exact day, but I'll ask after dinner! We could go to Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s bakery, or to the arcade Kenma likes, or, or… or anything, really!” Bokuto couldn't help but ramble; he and Akaashi hadn't been on a date since the zoo, and he figured if Kuroo and Kenma were there too, he'd be less likely to feel as anxious.

The two chatted a bit more as the prepared dinner, speaking mostly of Emiko and her improvement as of late. She'd done really well in the practice match the previous day, and Bokuto really enjoyed seeing the proud smile the graced Akaashi’s lips every time he mentioned it.

Dinner went smoothly, and Bokuto found himself wondering what, exactly, he'd been so scared of. Both Akaashi and Emiko were acting the same as always towards him, as if he hadn't been virtually absent for the past couple weeks, and it started to make him feel a little guilty, like he had been selfish.

Bokuto was jarred from his thoughts as a hand squeezed his thigh under the table, and he looked up to see Akaashi glancing at him with a small, warm smile, as if he knew what Bokuto had been thinking of. Bokuto flashed him a grateful smile on return, and finished off his soup, feeling a bit better than before.

After dinner, as Bokuto helped wash the dishes, he felt a small hand grab at his shirt. He looked down at Emiko, smiling warmly.

“What's up, Emiko?”

The young girl glanced away quietly while she thought over her words, and Bokuto waited patiently, knowing that it was probably important. Finally, she looked back up at him, her usual stoic expression replaced with what almost looked like… nervousness? Bokuto felt his smile wilt a little, suddenly worried.

“Bokuto-san, will you help me build a pillow fort tonight? And stay so we can make breakfast together in the morning before school?”

Bokuto’s heart stuttered in his chest as a bright, brilliant smile lit up his face. He'd apparently been worried for nothing, but he wasn't going to complain.

“Of course, Emiko! We're gonna build the best pillow fort ever!” He halted a bit in his confirmation and glanced at Akaashi sheepishly before continuing. “I mean, as long as it's okay with your dad, that is.”

Akaashi smiled down at the bowl he was washing out with a sponge and let out a small chuckle.

“That sounds perfectly okay to me, Bokuto-san. Do you need me to drive you home to get clothes for tomorrow?”

Bokuto smiled wide and whooped, already too distracted to answer Akaashi’s question, and instead took Emiko’s hands in his. She glanced away, but her cheeks had turned slightly red and a tiny smile danced on her lips.

“We're gonna have so much fun tonight, Emiko!” Bokuto cheered, eyes alight in excitement. “Let me just finish up helping with the dishes, and we’ll start building right away!”

“No, it's fine. Go ahead, Bokuto-san; I can take care of the rest.”

Bokuto turned toward Akaashi, tilting his head to the side in slight confusion.

“Huh? But I really don't mind, Akaashi, I like helping-”

“Bokuto-san, go.” Akaashi chuckled softly and looked up at him, his eyes warm and his smile dazzling. Bokuto felt himself smile dopily, his stomach twisting at Akaashi’s beauty.

“Okay, Akaashi, if you say so.” Bokuto leaned over to plant a kiss on Akaashi’s temple, then hurried off with Emiko to her room to start building. Akaashi smiled back down at the dishes, cheeks tinged with pink and eyes sparkling.

 

* * *

 

The pillow fort was small, slightly unstable, and not covered very well, but in Bokuto and Emiko’s eyes, it was perfect. They were barely able to squeeze in together (Bokuto ended up having to lay on his stomach with his bottom half sticking out the entrance), but it was cozy and warm and lit nicely with Emiko’s small nightlight that she used if she had to get up in the middle of the night.

By the time Akaashi joined them, Emiko was snuggled under a blanket, listening to the story Bokuto was reciting from memory about Princess Kaguya, the princess of moonlight said to be the most beautiful girl in all Japan. He'd just gotten to the part about the party held in celebration of her being named when he felt a gentle hand on his back, and looked over his shoulder to see Akaashi sitting by his side.

“Oh, Akaashi! Uh, I'm sure we could find some room in here somewhere, hold on!” Bokuto looked around, wiggling a little to see if he could make room, but Akaashi chuckled and shook his head.

“It's alright, Bokuto-san, I'm comfortable where I am.” He smiled and gently leaned on Bokuto, resting his head on Bokuto’s left shoulder blade. Bokuto smiled warmly and turned back to Emiko to continue the story.

He spoke of the many men wishing to meet Princess Kaguya, of the five knights who remained after most left in disappointment, of Princess Kaguya’s opposition to getting married. At this point, Emiko stopped him with a question. 

“Bokuto-san, if Princess Kaguya didn't want to get married, why was her father making her do it?”

Bokuto pursed his lips, thinking of the answer.

“Well, I think he just wanted to make sure she'd be safe after he passed away. He was getting pretty old; I think he was just scared that she'd end up alone.”

Emiko hummed quietly before nodding, cuing him to continue.

He barely made it five more minutes before he realized Emiko was asleep, and he smiled softly. He glanced over his shoulder at Akaashi, whose eyes were also closed, but they opened once he realized Bokuto had gone quiet. Bokuto nodded toward Emiko, and Akaashi smiled when he realized she'd fallen asleep. He pulled himself off of Bokuto to stretch his long limbs, allowing a quiet yawn to escape his lips. Bokuto scooched out of the fort carefully before sitting up as well. After stretching, both walked to Akaashi’s room down the hall and started getting ready for bed.

After both had gotten under the covers, Akaashi snuggled up to Bokuto’s side and placed a small kiss on his collarbone. Bokuto wrapped his arms around his boyfriend before kissing his head lightly.

“How'd I get so lucky to meet you?” He whispered into Akaashi’s hair, breathing in the familiar rosemary and lavender. Akaashi huffed out a small laugh and nuzzles Bokuto’s neck lovingly.

  
“I was just wondering the same thing.” His voice was soft, slightly slurred from sleepiness, and Bokuto found himself falling asleep quicker than he had in a long while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I'm so sorry. I also don't know when the next chapter will be out, but I wanna have it out much sooner than this one, and I'm planning on focusing on the KuroKen BokuAka double date, so yay! If I take too long, feel free to come yell at me on tumblr ( [chrisssenpai](http://chrisssenpai.tumblr.com) ), and I'll try to be much better about updating if I can power through this lingering writer's block! Kudos and comments are much appreciated, and for real, for all of you still reading, thank you so, so, so, so much. You mean the world to me. <3


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